Thunder's Fury
by McGann's Girl
Summary: An alternative PRNS fanfic: Kapri is impulsive, but what happens when she goes too far? Lothor and Zurgane are gone, and Marah is forced to rethink her evil roots. ThunderRangercentric. Oh, and those other rangers a bit as well...
1. Introduction

Prelude (from the very end of Thunder Strangers part 3):  
  
Sand and rock crunched under Hunter's boots. Water lapped impatiently against the shore beside him, crashing forward in foamy waves then sliding back out to sea. An emerald peninsula jutted out in front of Hunter and Blake, creating a small barrier between them and the misty mountains that loomed mysteriously beyond it. Hunter looked over at Blake, who was walking silently by his side. He returned Hunter's glance and grinned half-heartedly. Hunter sighed. 'Oh, the road ahead,' he thought.  
  
**************  
  
Sitting alone on the small cliff, he stared out over the valley, filled with green vegetation and scattered with birds. He stuck his jaw out and squinted against the angry tears stinging his crystalline eyes. Betrayed. The word ran through his head in a million directions at once. Betrayed... by the one he had put his trust in... most of it anyway. And now nothing was left but anger and hurt. A bird landed on a nearby tree branch. He watched its shadow flutter, distorted against the grass. If only he could have talked to his foster parents a little longer. Why did their apparitions in the Cave of Spirits have to leave so quickly? He sighed irritably.  
  
"Hunter?" the familiar voice came unexpectedly from behind him. Blake stepped onto the cliff. "It was Lothor all along. I can't believe it..."  
  
Hunter looked down at his hands, which were balled into tight fists. He sniffed and blinked the tears away. "I can."  
  
"Well," Blake said, sitting down next to his friend and foster brother, "we could always go to the Wind Rangers."  
  
"Them," Hunter scoffed. "They don't trust us. They don't want to see us."  
  
"You mean YOU don't want to see THEM."  
  
"We don't need help, and we certainly don't need their pathetic attempt at sympathy." Hunter looked up at the scenery which lay before him once more. "They don't know the half of it."  
  
"That's no reason to shut them out, bro. They just want to help us."  
  
"You just have a thing for that blonde chick, don't you? Well? Isn't that it?" Hunter snapped angrily.  
  
Blake said nothing.  
  
"I knew it."  
  
"Bro, we don't have anyone else to turn to! Where else can we go? We can't camp out on this mountain forever!"  
  
"Are you serious? Risk being betrayed AGAIN? Fine! If you want to join them, then by all means, GO AHEAD!" Hunter jumped to his feet and stormed off into the forest. Thunder rumbled faintly in the distance.  
  
Blake sat for a moment longer. Then, sighing, he stood and went after Hunter.  
  
**************  
  
"You're ridiculous!" Kapri laughed. "Sometimes I can't even believe we're RELATED!"  
  
"Well what was I supposed to say? You and Uncle never told ME that Uncle was really the one who killed the Thunder Rangers' parents! That's not MY fault!"  
  
"Oh, silly silly Marah..." Kapri shook her head in mock-pitty. "Of course we didn't tell you! Look how you reacted when you finally DID learn the truth! If we had told you from the start, you probably would've spilled the beans to the Thunder Rangers... accidentally. And we certainly couldn't have THAT!"  
  
"I would not have!!! You should have told me the truth! Even Zurgane knew! And he's not even family!" Marah pointed to herself, "I AM!"  
  
Kapri rolled her eyes and put her hands on her hips.  
  
"URRGGG!" Marah screamed in frustration before storming out of the room. She was so angry at everyone! Why hadn't they told her? They could have told her, but they didn't trust her enough? Was that really the reason? Being born into a genetically evil family, Marah's temper was easily aroused, and this made her blood absolutely boil.  
  
"Why hello, Mar-" Zurgane started upon passing her in the hall. Marah just shoved past him angrily and speed-walked the rest of the distance to her room.  
  
Once inside, she sat down loudly and "humphed", resting her chin in cupped hands. She would never forgive them, she thought defiantly to herself. Never never. She'd hold it against them for always. 'That'll show them for lying to me.' She was on the bad team, but she couldn't help feeling a little sorry for the Thunder Rangers. After all, Marah thought with a touch of pride, her sister and uncle had played them extremely well. And something else troubled Marah, slightly, very deep down. Something about the way the Thunder Rangers had been the shining stars of her Uncle's space fortress, the key component in Uncle's evil plans. So quickly the whole ship had turned on them. There wasn't even the slightest hint of hesitation from anyone. It was perfectly normal for them all. Was Marah the only one that hadn't known? The only one who felt a little hesitation? Was she just not smart enough to know the truth? Not evil enough? She'd never fit in. Kapri would always be Uncle's favorite, always the one to do everything right. Marah was younger, only second best in comparison to her sister. She could never do anything right- or better than Kapri, it seemed. Nope, Marah sighed, she would always be the misfit of the family.  
  
*************  
ok so that's just a little taste of what my story will be like. basically, the thunder rangers will have to figure out what path they're lives need to take. marah will EVENTUALLY become an ally of sorts. and as for that infamous green ranger that is supposedly going to be introduced to the show later on? well, i've got my OWN ideas about who that will be.... hope no one hates my expanding on marah and making her into my own character. please r&r!!! and no flames! (also, a possible romance in the future... heh. and i might even brave a tricky love triangle on top of that- Blake, Tori, Dustin... maybe) 


	2. Relations

I took a really minor detail from the show (Marah and Kapri fighting over a date with Choobo- don't ask me why they would...) and twisted it... a lot, to make it work for my story. I might be doing more of that in the future. I've already got one other detail pinned down that I want to incorporate.  
And now, read on... as the plot thickens.... (don don don) heh ok I'm done now...  
  
****************  
  
"Oh but do I really HAVE to?" Marah complained. She had been asked on a second date with Choobo after her first victory against Kapri, in which Marah had asked Choobo out before Kapri could. Marah had thought at the time that she wanted to go out with Choobo, but after the first date she realized her tragic mistake in judging his character. Unfortunately, he had asked her on another excursion, and since Kapri knew that the first date hadn't worked out, she had naturally volunteered Marah for another round. It was probably just revenge for not being the one to date him, Marah figured.  
  
"You should feel honored. Choobo is very... high in stature," Kapri said with no hint of comfort whatsoever, knowing perfectly well how much Marah disliked Choobo. "Now take off your headdress so I can try and do SOMETHING with this hair of yours."  
  
Marah pulled off her massive headdress and set it on the vanity. It took up almost the entire surface. Wincing, she braced herself as Kapri yanked out a tangle and started to pull chunks of Marah's hair in different directions. After nearly an hour, Kapri had finished working.   
  
"You're just hopeless, you know that," Kapri sighed nastily. Marah let the comment roll off her back as she looked in the mirror. She tried to hide the shock and dismay on her face. Her hair was hideous. "Put these on," Kapri was saying, laying out an outfit on Marah's bed before leaving the room. Marah struggled into the clothes her sister had chosen for her and looked again in the mirror. Hideous. She did somewhat like the red and purple feathers on her back, but that was about it. She dreaded going on this date with Choobo. Just thinking about it made her skin crawl. He barely even looked human! And he was so... goofy. How could she have accepted the offer? Oh yes, it was Kapri who'd answered for her. Funny, how Kapri always wanted- and seemed to get- what Marah also wanted. But when Marah didn't want something, Kapri was first in line to make sure that Marah got that thing she didn't desire. And it wasn't as if she could back down now. After all, Choobo was a general... lieutenant... oh whatever his new title was, it was important. If Marah were to refuse, it would be like a servant refusing a date with the emperor. Marah looked up from the mirror at the sound of footsteps and off-key whistling from outside her bedroom.  
  
"Ahem," Choobo cleared his throat and knocked on the door.  
  
"Coming," Marah squeaked. She gripped the edge of her vanity and stood stiffly, feeling a sickly dread at the pit of her stomach. 'Right foot, left foot, right foot...' she told herself, making her way to the door. Taking a very deep breath, Marah opened it. She could have vomited from the stench alone, radiating off of Choobo's green body. He was wearing a bow tie, which was wedged beneath his double chin. His small red goggles seemed to pop out and boggle at her. His ears twitched. He breathed heavily as he shifted from foot to foot. A green sweat drenched his forehead.  
  
"You look very... NICE... this evening," he said, coiling his fingers slowly in front of his face.  
  
Marah tried her best to smile, but it came out looking more like a frown than anything else. "You look nice too," she choked out, trying not to inhale the foul odor.  
  
"Well, shall we be going then?" There was a hint of a chuckle in Choobo's voice.  
  
Marah nodded in response and stepped stiffly in front of him. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Choobo peek inside her room and sniff. He shivered slightly, from what, Marah wasn't sure, but she tried not to think about it as they made their way down the corridor.  
  
**************  
  
The early morning was dark and damp. Blake sat thinking at the base of a large tree, while Hunter practiced ninja moves on a wide tree trunk.  
  
"Hey, bro," Blake said, "take it easy. The sun has barely even risen yet. You can practice later."  
  
Hunter said nothing, only swung his leg out and up, kicking the tree so hard that several wet leaves plummeted to the ground around him. He wanted to let out his built up anger. He had too much rage to know what to do with it.   
  
Blake continued to talk as Hunter attacked the tree trunk with much force. "Calm down, bro. Hey, do you think I should start a fire? It's probably going to be cold today." He looked up at the sky. "Might even rain..." his voice trailed off as he waited for Hunter to answer.  
  
After a moment: "Why bother making a fire then? If it's going to rain," Hunter grunted between jabs and kicks.  
  
"True," Blake considered. He shivered. "Bro, I'm so friggen cold right now. I'm going to get some fire wood."  
  
"You can't build a fire when the wood's wet," Hunter muttered under his breath as Blake headed off.  
  
"What was that you said?" Blake asked turning back, a little irritated. Hunter just kept practicing. Blake shrugged and shoved his way into the thicker part of the forest.  
  
Hunter stopped his practice after a while and sat down, panting. 'You can never be too prepared,' he assured himself. 'And that's what I am... prepared.'  
  
**************  
  
Marah and Choobo sat at a dimly lit table against a large window, looking out into space. Marah gazed wistfully out at the stars, wishing that she could be on any one of them rather than on Uncle's space fortress... on a date with this creature. They were waiting for their food to be brought. Choobo talked on and on, not seeming to realize that Marah wasn't listening. Marah barely noticed when he stopped speaking for her to respond. Looking quickly away from the window, she threw in a fast, "Oh, really... How fascinating," so that Choobo would continue, which he did.   
  
A kelzack entered with their food. It placed the plates and drinks on the table, bowed, and left as swiftly as it had entered.   
  
"Mmm. I'm starving," Choobo said before shoving his face into the food, which looked disgusting even when it wasn't smeared on his face. Marah gulped and looked down at her own plate. She tried to eat, but she just wasn't hungry... And the unappetizing noises coming from Choobo's side of the table didn't really help either. "So anyway..." Choobo began again, partially wiping his face off with a black cloth napkin. Marah pushed a chunk of food around on her plate with her fork, tuning out her date's uninteresting babble.  
  
Marah was nibbling on her food and gazing out the window; Choobo was chattering foolishly and laughing at his own jokes, when Marah suddenly looked up. Choobo had just mentioned the Thunder Rangers.   
  
"... like I was crazy or something. But I sure showed him. And those Thunder Rangers... Well, they won't see THAT one coming," Choobo was saying with his mouth half full.  
  
"Won't see what coming?" Marah cut in.  
  
Choobo stared at her for a moment, surprised that she had spoken out of turn. Then he realized that he had to answer her. "Oh, yes. The new org we just received. Of course."  
  
"What is it that you're planning to do to the Thunder Rangers?" Marah asked a bit too hastily.  
  
"Well, get rid of them of course! Haven't you been listening?" he laughed, as if Marah's supposed stupidity was cute. He figured that it was all just part of the act in dating.  
  
A very small alarm went off inside Marah, in the farthest corner of her heart. "You don't mean to- to... KILL them, do you? Is that what you're saying?"  
  
"Yes, very good... Marah." Choobo had never addressed her by name before. This verbal exploration was NOT to be tolerated by Marah, so she glared at him, making him sorry to ever have done it. "It would be best to get them out of the picture," he added, a little frightened.  
  
"And that's what my uncle wants?"  
  
Choobo did not respond right away to this. Marah eyed him suspiciously. "Well... ah... you know what? Heh heh..." he tried to laugh a little to lift her suspicions.  
  
"No. What?"  
  
"It's really quite funny actually..." He started to laugh nervously.  
  
"Get on with it!" Marah said, slightly relishing in her under-lying power of authority over him, which she did not have over most anyone else on the ship. At least there was one enjoyable aspect of being in Choobo's company.  
  
"Your ah... your sister actually came up with the idea. Heh heh... isn't that funny. And Master Lothor... heh heh... oh you'll really find this amusing-" he stopped to see if his laughter was helping at all. He coughed a bit, choking on his chuckles at the sight of Marah's tight-lipped stare. "He doesn't really know about it... yet," Choobo added. Now he was really nervous. Green sweat soaked his face and dripped down his chin.  
  
"Do mean to tell me that Uncle doesn't KNOW about this plan?"  
  
"YET!" Choobo screeched in fright, dropping his fork (not that he'd been using it). There was a silence between them as the fork hit the floor, clinking and clattering, rattling as it settled itself at Choobo's feet. "Yet," he said again breathlessly.  
  
Marah took a deep breath. "And when will you tell him? I think it would be better for you to tell him before I do- For your sake, not mine."  
  
"Oh yes, of course... of course. Tomorrow. Tomorrow I'll tell him. Heh?" He laughed as if it were a question, asking if everything was all right again. Marah's lips lifted ever so slightly at the corners. She really did love being in power for once. When in power, her more evil tendencies seemed to kick in.  
  
They finished their meal and, at last, Marah made it to the sanctuary of her own bed chambers. She leaned against the inside of the door, marking the finality of the evening. She listened with relief as Choobo's clumsy shuffling footsteps faded away down the hall.  
  
***************  
  
By the time Blake returned to the clearing, Hunter had begun to practice his moves on the tree again. Upon seeing this, Blake flung the fire wood down in frustration and stepped rigidly over to his foster brother. "If anyone should be doing that, it should be me," he said in an angry but calm tone.  
  
Hunter continued to practice as before, making no attempt to respond.  
  
"You're the one that temporarily destroyed Lothor with that crystal! At least you have that LITTLE sense of revenge! I have NOTHING!" The last word echoed off into the depths of the forest. There was a faint rustling of birds taking off into flight at the disturbance.  
  
"Oh, so I see you've been doing some thinking..." Hunter said coldly.  
  
"I can't believe how SELFISH-" Blake swung his arms- " you're getting! What's come over you? Just because you're pissed off, doesn't mean that you get to take it all out on me! I'm tired of putting up with you like this! You're not the only one who was betrayed here! I'm in the same boat! The SAME EXACT ONE! It's time for you to acknowledge that!" He pointed his finger down towards the ground.  
  
"Oh, so you think you deserve more than I do now, is that it? First wanting to turn to those Wind Rangers? And now this? What's come over ME? I should be asking you the same damn question!" Hunter stood still now, fists clenched tightly, a cold stare fixed on Blake, who returned it with equal venom. Before Blake could make a comeback, Hunter stormed off in the opposite direction, into the part of the forest that they hadn't yet explored.  
  
"Oh, REAL SMART, BRO! Just run away from your problems! Coward! And to think that we are even related through adoption! How could I get stuck with someone so-" he stopped. He couldn't see Hunter anymore. He felt a hot serge of anger, mixed with a small bit of guilt and worry. 'Watch him get lost now. If Lothor's henchmen find him alone, he'll be in for it. Always has to be the hero.' Blake sat down and vainly began to build a fire. He wasn't going to go after Hunter, not this time.   
  
****************  
  
"You TOLD HER???" Kapri whispered harshly.  
  
"No... I was just... what I meant to say is, your Highness..."  
  
Kapri cocked her head to one side, hands on her hips, and tapped a foot in impatience. "I'm WAITING Choobo."  
  
"We were just making ah... polite conversation. Yes. That's it."  
  
"Oh I see," Kapri said with a deceptive smile, "you were simply making polite conversation with my sister-"  
  
"Yes yes. Polite conversation," Choobo wrung his hands together anxiously.  
  
"Ah..." Kapri said softly. Choobo stared at her, hope on his face. Maybe she wouldn't yell at him this time. How could she? They were discussing this secretly behind some barrels in a storage room in the dead of night. They could only speak just above a whisper. His hope faded as Kapri looked up at him with a ferocious electricity snapping in her pastel eyes. "A TOP SECRET MURDER SCHEME IS NOT POLITE CONVERSATION!!!!" she shrieked, emphasizing the beginning of each word, cutting it short with venom. She trembled with inherited evil rage. Choobo stood cowering before her. "You better fix this, Choobo, or I swear I WILL make sure that you get much worse than the Thunder Rangers. MUCH WORSE! Mark my words. Now get out of my face!"  
  
As Choobo scurried away, Kapri thought to herself, 'He better convince Uncle that killing the Thunder Rangers is a good idea. Or else I'm sunk. And even if Uncle does agree, there'll still be Marah to deal with. If she tells Uncle ANYTHING, especially that I was involved in the plan, I'll get it for sure. And the fact that we hadn't planned on him knowing is bad enough. Well, no matter how things play out, Marah will have to go.' With a self-reassuring nod of the head, Kapri followed Choobo out of the storage room.  
  
***************  
  
Okay, so was that terrible? (please no flames) I must inform you all that I'm writing this while I'm sick, so please overlook any tiny, INSIGNIFICANT flaws in grammar, spelling, etc. The plot will get much more interesting... trust me. I've known everything that's going to happen even before I commited this story to paper (or virtual paper... computer screen... oh nevermind). So just keep reading and watch the story unfold! (that was cheesey, I know) Again, R&R please!!!  
~muches~  
ECHO 


	3. The First Betrayal

Hunter crouched behind a trash can. He had found his way out of the forest and to the motocross tracks near town. After a while of watching, Hunter was sure that no one was in the building, so he stood and dashed towards the warehouse. He halted at the doorway, just to make sure that no one was inside, then he slipped in. He let his eyes adjust for a moment, but he had to move quickly. 'Finally something fun to do,' he thought slyly as he made his way down the rows of bikes. "Hmm... which one to choose...."  
  
He settled on a yellow one in the corner. No one would notice right away if THAT one was missing.  
  
****************  
  
"Hey, Kelly?" Dustin walked over to her with a perplexed look on his face. "Do you know where my back-up cycle is? I thought I left it in the warehouse. Did you move it or something?"  
  
"No," Kelly said confused. "I didn't do anything to it. Why don't you just ride your 'baby'?" she smirked, elbowing him playfully.   
  
Dustin set his jaw out squarely. "Tori ah... hasn't gotten around to fixing it yet. From when she crashed it," he added.  
  
"Oh. I'll see if I can find it for ya. Why don't you check in the warehouse again. If neither of us can find it, then you can ride one of the company's bikes. Deal?"  
  
"Yeah, sure," Dustin tried to smile. But there was something not quite right about this. Kelly glanced up into his face then down at the ground before heading off.  
  
About twenty minutes later, Dustin headed out of the warehouse, frustrated. Kelly met him outside.  
  
"Couldn't find it?" she asked.  
  
"Nope. I'm guessing that you couldn't either."  
  
Kelly shook her head. "Sorry. So did you wanna ride today?"  
  
"Well, that's what I'd planned on...."  
  
"Okay. Here, follow me. I'll hook you up with one of the rentals. Free of charge." She smiled, but Dustin didn't seem to notice.   
  
Once Dustin was out on the tracks, he felt a little better. Everything seemed to be building up lately, getting complicated, and becoming more so by the minute. He just wanted a break. It felt like he hadn't been riding in ages, and riding was his release, his escape from things. There was just too much ranger stuff going on for the moment. And Tori wouldn't let anyone forget about the Thunder Rangers, Blake especially. Dustin couldn't help feeling a little sorry for her. Blake hadn't contacted her since the Cave of Spirits incident. And Dustin didn't want to see Tori loose her spunk... get her heart broken by someone who was never really there for her anyway. Dustin personally couldn't see what Tori saw in Blake, but that didn't matter so much. Rarely did he ever actually understand her.  
  
Dustin began concentrating on his jumps and other tricks he'd picked up. He barely even noticed when he started to ride way out into the outskirts of the tracks, deep in the forest, where not too many riders went. But he figured he was skilled enough so he continued riding. Just as he launched into a massive jump, another biker came soaring by. The rider landed several feet ahead of Dustin and revved up a burst of speed. Dustin stared as his own bike hit the ground hard, jolting him slightly. After a moment: "HEY! THAT'S MY BIKE!!!" he yelled in a mixture of anger and surprise. "AND MY HELMET!" he added before zooming off after the mystery rider.  
  
It took him a couple of tries to catch up with the rider, but finally Dustin had pulled up along side him. "That's mine! Hey! STOP!" Dustin cried out as the mystery rider kicked the rental bike. Dustin tried to steady himself, but by that time the thief had already shot ahead of him again. Thoroughly annoyed, Dustin pulled his hands off the handle bars. He had never done this on a motor cycle before, and he couldn't see how this would help him, but it was all he could think to do. "Ninja storm! Ranger form! HA!"  
  
****************  
  
Hunter faltered as a bright light flashed behind him. 'Oh, brother,' he thought. 'Now he's MORPHING to catch me?' He pulled back on the bike's shotty handles and sped forward.   
  
"STOP! THIEF!" Dustin was frantically yelling behind him.   
  
Hunter smirked and called back, "I should have known YOU'D be the one to have the oldest bike on the rack!"  
  
There was a pause. "Hunter?" Dustin called out over the roar of his bike's engine. "DUDE, is that you?"  
  
Hunter didn't respond as usual, but pulled off an amazing stunt on his bike as the two rangers sailed over the next jump, Hunter still ahead.  
  
"Dude, wait up!"  
  
Hunter rode faster. He heard the sound of Dustin leveling down from his ranger state. It didn't make any difference however, if it was a gesture of peace, because the track was rounding back towards town and Hunter wanted to avoid public attention at that moment. The last thing he wanted was to get stuck with that motocross scout again, especially now when he wasn't even with Blake. The thought of his foster brother reminded him of their fight earlier, causing him to think twice about heading back to the mountains. But where else would he go? No, he'd just have to talk things out with Blake. And he hated to talk things out. He jumped his bike over a barrier off the tracks and rode into the woods. He leapt off the bike and pulled off the helmet, shaking out his hair. Dustin was climbing over a fallen tree, hurrying towards him. The two stood panting, staring at each other. Hunter smirked. "Thanks for the loan," he said before shooting up in a ray of colorful light. He was gone in the next instant.  
  
"Wha- uhhh-" Dustin stuttered, pointing his index finger out towards the spot where Hunter had stood mere seconds before. Then he sighed at the more pressing issue at hand. Somehow he'd have to get both of the bikes back to the shop by... he looked at his watch... now.   
  
***************  
  
"For how long?" Choobo was asking.  
  
"Until we've taken over my uncle's ship. Once he is out of power, then we can bring her back out of it... if her mind can even withstand it that long."  
  
"Is Zurgane in on this yet?"  
  
"Him? No. He's far too loyal towards my uncle to take part in a scheme against him! Think Choobo! Think before you ask stupid questions!"  
  
"Yes of course. Sorry, your Highness."  
  
"Now that I'm thinking about it... Perhaps we need to mind warp Zurgane too. He might cause a problem if he's not. He's quiet, but his intelligence far surpasses the average evil follower's, even... yours," Kapri said swinging her finger around and landing it on Choobo.   
  
"But if he's so smart, won't he break the warp?"  
  
"You're right, Choobo! How do we keep him that way? Well," Kapri laughed ironically, "we don't need to worry about Marah coming out of it. Kind people are so easily manipulated. But Zurgane... " Kapri closed off into deep thought, shutting out Choobo.   
  
"Well..." Choobo continued saying, "we could send him to a distant planet!"  
  
Kapri looked up with an expression on her face as if to say, "Were you talking?"  
  
Choobo repeated his thought.  
  
Kapri chewed on the idea. "No... too easy. Knowing Zurgane, he'd find a way out of that. Isolation on an uninhabited planet couldn't stop him from serving and protecting his master. I don't know how we're going to deal with him...."  
  
"Uh... um... your Highness?"   
  
Kapri looked up at Choobo irritably. "WHAT?"   
  
"Should we kill him?"  
  
Kapri stared at Choobo for a second with wide eyes. It was so simple. She liked it. And did they even need Zurgane anyway? Grinning saucily, she threw her head back and relished in evil laughter.  
  
****************  
  
Hunter hiked up the last incline before the clearing. He was exhausted. First climbing down the mountain, then riding motocross, then hiking back up the mountain. He could have zapped himself back to the camp site, but he wasn't totally sure how to find it from an arial view, so he walked. Now, the last thing he wanted to do now was talk things out with Blake. But he knew it was coming, and if he ignored Blake, things would get even worse between them. Better to take care of it now, he thought, rather than having to deal with it later on.   
  
When Hunter broke through the wall of trees and stumbled tiredly into the clearing, Blake was waiting for him.  
  
"Where the hell were you? It's almost dark!" he exclaimed.  
  
Hunter smirked slightly. "You sound like Mom." There was silence between them. 'Maybe every thing's resolved itself,' Hunter thought hopefully, carefully keeping his face frozen with the slight grin, but his eyes impassive.  
  
"Hey bro? We need to talk."  
  
Hunter sighed inwardly. "Yeah, I know we do."  
  
"Look, I'm sorry that I blew up at you, but you've got to understand why I did it in the first place." Hunter nodded and waited. The two sat down facing each other and Blake continued. "You've been cold ever since the Cave of Spirits. I know it's not something I did. I felt cold too, on the inside. But I tried not to let that get between us. Ya know?" Hunter nodded again. "And you didn't seem to realize that you were being so cold towards me. That's what really bothered me the most.... That I tried to keep things normal and you didn't."  
  
Hunter knew he was supposed to take over the conversation now, but he hesitated. He wasn't totally sure what he wanted to say, or what he'd end up saying. "I was just pissed." 'Okay.... That wasn't so hard.' Blake sat silently, waiting for more. "And.... I don't know, bro! What do want me to say?"  
  
"I just want to know how you feel, man. We can't let this get to us! That would make him even happier!" Blake looked up towards the darkening sky, indicating that he was speaking about Lothor. He could see that Hunter was thinking. Hunter studied a blade of grass between his thumb and index finger as he thought, his brow furrowed. Blake sat quietly waiting. Hopefully, it would be worth the wait. Only Blake seemed to see what a deep, scarred soul Hunter really had. Blake knew that Hunter hardly ever opened up. When their foster parents had died, Hunter had opened up a little bit. But that was the only time Blake could recall. He wasn't sure if this would be one of those 'opening-up' times or not, so he waited.  
  
"I just kind of closed down, shut things out, shut people out," Hunter said quietly, and looked up at Blake. "I couldn't stop myself from doing it. I was just... betrayed."  
  
"Majorly," Blake threw in, smiling a little.  
  
Hunter didn't smile. He felt angry, and he didn't really know what to do with that. There was just so much anger in him. It ran too deep to just yell at someone and not feel it anymore. There wasn't any way to cure that constant ache, like a heavy weight on his conscience. Hunter couldn't see any way to get rid of it. It felt like it would be there forever. Suddenly, he realized that Blake was still waiting for him to continue. He looked up again.  
  
Blake knew from the subconscious look on Hunter's face that he was finished; he couldn't handle anymore 'open-ness'. But that was all right with Blake. He couldn't expect Hunter to miraculously articulate his feelings after so many years of burying them deep down inside. Hunter had always been a closed-off kind of guy. Maybe he always would be.   
  
"I'm sorry I was so cold, bro," Hunter said.  
  
Blake looked surprised, but grinned.  
  
"So things are cool?"  
  
"Things are cool." The two foster brothers shook on it, both grinning, and stood up. "So," Blake asked curiously, "where WERE you today?"  
  
"I found my way to the race tracks. I uh... took someone's bike and went riding," Hunter said, making it sound like no big deal. "Turns out it was Dustin's. Eventually, he recognized that it was me, after I whooped his Wind Ranger butt. I left before he could get a word in edge-wise."  
  
Blake stared. "You went all the way to the tracks? And you stole a bike?"  
  
"Borrowed," Hunter corrected.  
  
"Did you see Tori?"  
  
Hunter looked at him silently. Blake took the hint. "It was great to watch Dustin's face right before I took off," Hunter said smirking.   
  
"Oh, now they're REALLY gonna want to see us!" Blake laughed.  
  
"Who said I wanted to?" Hunter added jokingly, but behind their smiles, both brothers knew that that was another argument waiting for them just around the corner. They ignored it for the moment.  
  
*****************  
  
"You saw Hunter?" Tori practically shouted when Dustin told her the next day. "And you didn't call me last night to tell me? What's wrong with you?!" She whacked Dustin in the arm.  
  
"Ouch! Hey I had homework..." Dustin said, surveying his wound.  
  
"Did you see-"  
  
"No. Blake wasn't there," Dustin finished for her.   
  
Tori sighed. "That's strange, for them not to be together I mean.... So, does Shane know yet?"  
  
"Nope. Haven't gotten to him yet."  
  
"Well why didn't you call us all to Ninja Ops.? It seems pretty important, like something we should all know about. Well doesn't it?" Tori glared at him.  
  
"Okay! Fine! Sorry I didn't announce it to the whole world!"  
  
Tori looked down. "Sorry. It's just, well you know."  
  
Dustin shrugged. "Whatever."  
  
"Oh, good!" Kelly greeted them warmly. "You're both here! And early too! My lucky day...." she said as she looked down at her clipboard.  
  
****************  
  
Marah was confused. Kapri had been acting strange lately, more so than usual. At times she would be unusually nice to Marah, and other times would completely avoid her like a plague. It didn't make sense. Nothing seemed to be quite right anymore. Lothor was getting lazy, letting Choobo do all of the evil planning. Everyone was busy preparing for the attack on the Thunder Rangers and totally ignoring Marah. But Kapri on the other hand, she seemed to be right in the middle of all the action. It took Marah a while to recall that Choobo had talked about getting rid of the Thunder Rangers... for good. So why did it bother her at all? It wasn't supposed to. She had never even hesitated when Uncle talked about "getting those darn Wind Rangers," so why should the Thunders be any different? Somehow, Marah had never really made the connection that Uncle's goal was to KILL. She had just never thought about it like that before. And yet now that she did, she didn't like it. Killing seemed so extreme to her. Attacking with wimpy orgs was one thing... but inflicting death? Why hadn't she realized it sooner? She felt so ignorant! And now she felt as if she didn't know the villains around her anymore. They became strangers to her as she began to view things differently, more clearly and with more truth. It was like finally surfacing in deep water. The more she thought, and the more excluded she became, the more misplaced she made herself feel. It wasn't right to feel that way about family, she knew that much. But then why was she not part of the group? The family seemed to be dividing, crumbling around her. They were no longer a tight knit group of bad guys, scheming together and celebrating every minor victory. Where had that all gone? And what exactly was causing it to leave? The more Marah wondered, the worse she felt. Her family did love her... right?  
  
**************  
  
"Do you know what you're supposed to do?" Kapri asked quickly, glancing at the clock.   
  
"Pour this into Marah's drink when she's not looking," Choobo repeated Kapri's directions from earlier and shook the tiny vile of clear liquid.   
  
"Good. Now go."  
  
Choobo hurried to Marah's room to pick her up for their third date.   
  
Marah was trying to think positively, but the thought of yet ANOTHER date with Choobo was revolting. They were scheduled to have dinner again in the same place on the ship. Marah had tried to reject the offer, but things seemed out of her hands these days.   
  
Once again seated beside the huge window, now overlooking Earth in the ship's ever-changing orbit, the third date seemed to repeat the second. Marah sat and listened, nodding dully and trying not to fall asleep.   
  
"The attack is running behind schedule," Choobo was droning, "and I'm really in hot water these days." Choobo tried to make himself sound important. "And with that new org going out of control like it did... Well," he snorted, "it could be weeks before we find another one capable of doing the job."  
  
"Really..." Marah said automatically.   
  
"Yes, and your uncle is in quite a fix right now. Not very pleasant to be around these days. But I'm sure that you already knew that."  
  
"I haven't seen too much of him lately." Marah looked out the window and watched the swirling clouds of Earth's atmosphere for a moment.  
  
"Oh... well no matter." Choobo continued on talking after a few seconds. Marah looked back at the table and sat, sipping her drink, feeling strangely still inside.  
  
***************  
  
Marah was so tired that she had to end the date early. Choobo didn't seem very surprised, but Marah was too sleepy to notice. The moment that she reached her room, she fell asleep, slumped against the closed door...  
  
****************   
  
In the wee hours of the morning, Marah was stirred to consciousness by someone pushing on the door behind her. Marah woke herself up as she slid forward. Who was opening her door at this time of night? Groggy, Marah tried to see who was stepping apprehensively into the room. Her vision was oddly blurred, and all that she could make out was a dark bulky figure advancing on her. The intruder seized Marah's arm and yanked her up to her feet.   
  
"Marah!" it whispered harshly. "Snap out of it! Get up! Come on!"  
  
Marah squinted in a dazed, confused fashion at the person before her. "Zurgane...?" she asked slowly, her speech slurred.  
  
"Great. They've drugged you. Come on, we've got to get out of-" They both looked towards the door, which was ajar. A sliver of light was starting to seep through the crack. "HURRY." Zurgane pushed Marah forward and out the door. "This way," Zurgane said urgently, heading down the hall in the opposite direction of the light.  
  
Everything seemed to rock from side to side, swaying dangerously under her feet as she ran. She stumbled clumsily around the corner, following close behind the one leading her. "Zurgane...?" she asked again. She saw Zurgane's feet falter at the sound.   
  
"Just follow me," he said over his shoulder.  
  
"What's... goin'... on...? What're we running from?" she drawled slowly.  
  
"I can't tell you now."  
  
"But-"  
  
"Later!" Zurgane said, harshness returning to his tone.  
  
Marah cast her eyes down sadly at being snapped at, the drug making her revert to childish ways. "I... jus' wanna know...."  
  
Zurgane turned abruptly around. "Stop this nonsense! There's no TIME to explain! They're going to kill me and for all I know, they're going to kill you too."   
  
Marah stared, her mouth hanging slightly open. This was madness, but in her haze she believed him. After a pause, they started running again. Now Marah could hear something behind them, its echo carrying down the twisting corridors towards them. Panic ripped through her and quickened her pulse. Her heart beat suddenly fast, pounding against her ribs.  
  
"This way," Zurgane pulled her around another corner. From the growing noise behind them, Marah could tell that their pursuer was gaining on them rapidly and was being joined by- Marah couldn't tell how many.   
  
"KEEP RUNNING!" Zurgane shouted above the mounting volume of rumble behind them, sensing Marah lagging behind him. "COME ON!" Zurgane pushed her forward. He pulled her down the hall, causing her to stumble. Zurgane didn't stop to let her gain footing again and she let herself be painfully dragged. She was trying to get to her feet as Zurgane ran and glanced over her shoulder at the growing sound of the pursuers when they rounded the corner. A hoard of Kelzacks and a new org Marah hadn't seen before were the ones tailing them.   
  
"GET THEM!" the org hollered. Marah stumbled and fell.   
  
"GET UP!" Zurgane shouted frantically as the kelzacks leaped forward. Zurgane turned back and yanked her to her feet. He pushed her forward and ran behind her, throwing circular blades over his shoulder at the kelzacks. Marah tried to run, but now terror swept over her in a massive typhoon of a wave and she stumbled over her feet. Her feet, in their clunky knee-high boots, dragged as she propelled herself down the endless hall. She could hear blades whizzing and slicing through the air behind her. She felt her heart seem to stop as the heavy footsteps of Zurgane suddenly ceased. She halted, tripping and falling flat on her face. She flipped over and pushed up her torso with her elbows. Zurgane lay on the floor several fathoms behind her, a long, flaming red blade protruding from his leg. Marah tried to drag herself away from him, seeing as the hoard of kelzacks jumped on top of him, beating him relentlessly on the ground. Marah stared in total horror. "GO!" Zurgane hissed, his voice now muted beneath the kelzacks' blunt weapons.   
  
Everything seemed to go into slow motion as Marah watched the org step forward from behind the tackled Zurgane, drawing a long saber. Her eyes widened in total fright now. The org stepped over to Zurgane and raised the blade high over its head. Marah could hear herself screaming at the top of her lungs, the loudest most terrified scream she had ever uttered, at the exact same moment that the blade came down upon poor Zurgane. In her ringing ears, Marah's scream mixed with Zurgane's. She looked on in terror as his body fell limp, then jerked violently before falling still forever.   
  
"DON'T LET HER ESCAPE!" the org cried out suddenly.  
  
Marah tore her eyes away from Zurgane's lifeless corpse, looked up, scrambled to her feet and bolted down the hall. She could feel tears streaming back past her ears as she ran. She could barely breathe. She had to find someone. Anyone. Was this the org that had gone wrong? She had a sickly feeling that this wasn't that one. This was the new one. And this was planned.  
  
She turned a corner, not consciously knowing where her feet were taking her. Above the pounding in her ears, she could hear the kelzacks thundering after her. She gasped as her foot caught on the other and her ankle twisted. She stumbled and willed herself to keep running, ignoring the hot pricks of pain traveling all the way up to her hip joint. Her mind was in a haze, an unnatural haze. She couldn't think clearly. She dodged from one hall to the next, not thinking, just doing. In this way, out that way. Down this hall, up that ramp. Her feet flew beneath her, occasionally lagging.  
  
Before she knew it, Marah was in her uncle's wing of the ship. Quickly she glanced over her shoulder. It sounded like she had lost the kelzacks... and that org. She ran faster and with more purpose now. She knew where she would go: her uncle's throne room. He might be in there. He often worked in that room into the very early hours of the morning. She could see a light streaming from the crack in the door. She felt her muscles relax slightly. Uncle would save her. He would take care of whatever was going on. But Zurgane- Marah chocked and blinked back hot tears. She slowed as she reached the door. As she went to open it, a voice seeped out to where she stood. Her hand stopped, hovering over the door knob. It was Kapri.  
  
"Stay still! Honestly! Hey, Choobo! Are we almost READY???" Kapri was snapping irritably.  
  
"Kapri, what are you doing? Have you lost every last bit of sense in that dense head of yours?"  
  
"Save it, Uncle."  
  
Marah gasped. She peeked in to the room. Lothor was tied to his throne from head to toe. Kapri was standing in front of him, with her back to the door. Choobo was off in the corner, fiddling with a switch board panel. Some strange contraption was hovering a meter above Lothor's head. It lurched forward and inch or two as Choobo pressed the wrong combination of buttons.  
  
"Hurry it up, Choobo! We haven't got all day!"  
  
"Don't DO this, Kapri! Think! What has gotten into you?" Lothor struggled in his chair.  
  
"Sense. That's what Uncle."  
  
"READY!" Choobo's voice squeaked nervously from the dark corner.   
  
Kapri stepped back. The strange contraption descended on Lothor's head and landed itself there with a mechanical hiss. There was a blinding flash of blue-white light. Marah could hear her uncle shouting and fighting the light as she shielded her eyes. As suddenly as it had come, the light vanished. Lothor sat motionless.  
  
"Uncle?" Kapri asked.  
  
Lothor's head snapped in her direction.  
  
Kapri glanced quickly at Choobo and smirked. Then she turned back to Lothor. "Who's in charge?"  
  
"You are, your highness," he responded hollowly, without feeling.  
  
That was all that Marah could take. She stumbled backwards from the door. She ran frantically back down the hall. Where to go? Where on Earth could she go? Marah hesitated. That was it! Earth! She would go to Earth! But then she'd have to find her way to the teleporters. Sighing determinedly, Marah set off running. As she neared the teleporters, she heard something.  
  
"Ah ha! There you are!" It was the org and his miniature army of kelzacks. Marah whipped her head around. They were hurtling around a corner and coming up behind her. She sped forward. She tore down the hall and skidded around a corner. The teleporters were her only hope now. Did they want to kill her? Or did they want to do to her what they had done to Uncle? Marah felt nauseous. A blazing hot beam of light flew past her head as she ran. Soon more gun shots followed. Marah dodged them as best she could, occasionally flinging herself from one wall to the other. She rounded another corner and there they were. The teleporter outlets sat silently, their glowing lights all off. Marah flung herself forward to them and shoved the power lever up. The lights flickered on, slicing into the darkness. Marah crawled into an outlet. As she reached for the button to teleport, a ray sped towards her and sank into her forearm. She cried out at the burning, raw flesh left exposed. She convulsively pulled her arm to her chest. She looked up to see her attackers almost at the teleporters.   
  
"GET HER! DON'T LET HER GET AWAY!"   
  
As the kelzacks launched themselves forward, Marah's other arm swung up, and her fingers found the button. She could feel herself fading away in the teleporter; several kelzacks hurtled themselves at her disappearing body, clattering against the wall behind her as they tumbled through her. The org was running to her now. Marah could hear the org's furious cry as she felt her very atoms coming apart and slipping away through the cosmos... to Earth.  
  
****************  
  
Author Speaking: Well, I've got much more coming. This is DEFINITELY going to be an ALTERNATIVE power rangers story. I'll mess with plenty, so be warned. I'm going to bring out minor characters and totally expand on them; I'll also be working a lot on the emotional stuff, really digging into the characters. So please keep reading. I'm really psyched about this fanfic! R&R PLEASE! 


	4. Paths Cross

Marah opened her eyes. From where she lay, flat on her back, she could see a canopy of lush green leaves trimmed in bright gray light above her. An overcast charcoal sky hung heavily beyond the ceiling of tree branches. She could hear strange noises all around her: rustling bushes, squawking birds, fluttering wings, buzzing insects. Marah lifted herself up on her elbows, but fell back. Her head ached tremendously from the drug that was now leaving her system. Her leg was almost numb with pain and the wound on her forearm stung under her torn sleeve. She was still wearing what she had worn on the third date with Choobo. That seemed so far away now.  
  
Suddenly, Marah felt very sick. The memories of the night before came flooding back in a huge, sickening wave. "Oh my God..." she whispered to herself. "It can't be true." It couldn't be real. What she had seen.... That couldn't possibly have happened. Kapri and Choobo... what had they done? And Uncle! Had they mind-warped him? Marah choked and pressed her palms into burning eyes. Zurgane had... he'd... Marah couldn't stand the thought. He was... dead...? It couldn't be. Why would Kapri orchestrate such a thing? But had it even been her idea to kill Zurgane? Or was it just that crazy org? And who had drugged her? Why? What threat did she pose? Her mind reeled with difficult questions.  
  
Marah tried to sit up again. Her head swam and everything slid into doubles before her large brown eyes. This wasn't right. It just wasn't. Nothing made sense anymore. It all felt very surreal. Marah sat up straighter as a surge of anger passed through her. She wouldn't believe that it had all been Kapri; she refused to. Kapri was her sister. She would never betray Marah like that. The family wasn't THAT evil was it? But then why had Kapri mind-warped their own uncle?   
  
"There must be some logical explanation," Marah said to herself, but her gut told her otherwise. She wasn't sure what to believe. She wanted to think that Kapri was doing all of this for a good reason, but she couldn't deny what she had seen, what had happened to her, to Uncle, to Zurgane. Poor Zurgane.... Marah's head spun again. She felt tears well up in her eyes, but she brushed them aside. She refused to cry. What if everything she had seen was an effect of the drug? A dream? Then it would be pointless to cry over an illusion, a hallucination. Yet it had all been so real. How could Marah know what was real and what wasn't?   
  
A drop of water fell onto her arm, its coldness startling her out of thought. That feeling of surrealness faded and all at once she felt real and grounded once more, back in reality. All she really knew now was that she was in a forest. It was probably evening, maybe a little earlier. She didn't come to Earth very often so she wasn't sure what to do next, obviously being so far from the city. She stood up and hot stabs of pain shot up her leg. She jolted and shifted her weight onto the other foot. Her ankle felt wobbly in its platformed boot. The pain caused a fresh wave of tears to press into the back of her eyes, and a knot formed in her throat. Marah stood motionless for a moment, letting the tears roll down her smudged cheeks, thinking of her uncle and of the deceased Zurgane. An overwhelming sadness engulfed her, seeming to suffocate her in its despair. Helpless, hopeless, she sank down to her knees and cried into shaky hands.   
  
******************  
  
"Hey Dustin," Kelly said, seeing him still working on a bike engine behind the store counter at Storm Chargers.  
  
Dustin glanced up. "Oh, hey."  
  
Kelly shifted a little. "So, what are you still doing here? I thought you'd already left. I was just closing up." She glanced behind her, over the counter and out the shop window, at the darkening sky. She cleared her throat.  
  
"I'm just gonna stay a little longer and finish this up. I can lock up if you want," Dustin said, not looking up.  
  
"Oh," Kelly sighed. "All right. Are you sure? I mean, I can stay a while. Maybe keep you company?"  
  
Dustin stopped what he was doing and looked up. "You've probably got something to do," he said dumbly. "I wouldn't be very good company tonight anyway."  
  
"Is everything okay?"  
  
"Yeah, it always is with me, ya know?"  
  
Kelly nodded a little with slightly narrowed eyes and raised eyebrows to acknowledge the odd statement. "Well, I probably shouldn't let you close up for me, but all right. Here." She extended the steel ring of shop keys. "You know which one to use?"  
  
"Yeah," Dustin reached out and took the keys. Their fingers touched briefly. "Thanks." He put the keys on the counter and started working again.  
  
Kelly looked around the small room for a second before turning. "See you tomorrow, Dustin," she said over her shoulder.  
  
"You too. Bye."  
  
Kelly walked over to the front door and opened it but didn't leave. Dustin stopped fiddling with the engine, sensing that she was still there. Kelly lingered in the doorway, thinking something over. Dustin studied the profile of her face against the dark gray sky and waited. "Dustin, if you ever need to talk or something... I'm here."  
  
"Yeah I know... but thanks," he said and nodded ever so slightly.  
  
"Right," Kelly said more to herself than to Dustin, turned on her heel, and left. The door swung closed behind her.  
  
Dustin watched her walk out into the dim evening, a slightly confused look on his face. After a moment, he shrugged. "Whatever." Slowly, he got back to work, alone with one solitary light on behind the counter, all by himself in the empty store.  
  
Outside, Kelly walked in a meandering fashion down the sidewalk. She wasn't really sure what had just happened. She didn't have time to wonder about it though, because, as she neared the parking lot, rain started to fall in large, cold droplets. "Great," Kelly groaned inwardly and pulled her jacket over her head, sprinting the rest of the way to her car.  
  
*****************  
  
Marah slopped through the muddy mess below her. Her hair was wet and hung limply against her face and neck. Her clothes, ripped and soaked through, were clinging to her shivering body. Her mind was blank and bitter now. She was lost in a cold, dismal despair. She tumbled through bushes and over large tree roots. She had been wandering for what felt like hours. It was almost completely dark now. The dark clouds overhead emptied their precipitation in huge freezing drops that splattered in great bursts of wetness as they hit the ground. Everything felt miserable. She couldn't even feel the pain in her leg anymore. The freezing rain had numbed it. Marah knew that she would have to stop walking eventually, but on she went, propelling herself forward with what seemed to be no energy. She had cried for so long, that now she was empty of every emotion, or at least she couldn't feel them anymore. Now it was just emptiness and a hollow loneliness.   
  
***************  
  
Hunter sat slumped against a tree with his jacket collar flipped up. His head was down turned against the wind and rain.  
  
"I guess you were right," he sighed.  
  
"About what?" Blake asked from the other side of the tree trunk.  
  
"The weather. You said it would rain."  
  
"Oh, right. I'd forgotten about that."  
  
Hunter was silent once more. It was late, but obviously, it wasn't the ideal weather to sleep in. He tried to fall asleep, but every time he got close, a large raindrop would land on him and he would be wide awake again. As he sat dully, he thought that he saw something in the distance, on the other end of the clearing. He squinted against the rain, trying to see the dark figure approaching. It was small and obscured behind the haze of pounding rain. A silent alarm went off in Hunter's head.  
  
"Blake!" Hunter said just loud enough for his companion to hear. "Blake, I think there's someone coming!"  
  
"What?"  
  
"Someone's coming!"  
  
The two brothers jumped to their feet and stood side by side under the partial shelter of the tree, their hands in front of them in the classic starting position of ninja battle. They waited tensely as the small figure stumbled towards them, bent in the pounding rain. Blake started to move his hands down, seeing that it wasn't a kelzack or an org and didn't look like a threat to them.   
  
"No!" Hunter snapped. "It might be a trick!"  
  
Blake's hands were back up in position.   
  
"Wait for it..." Hunter was telling himself under his breath. "Let it come to you...."  
  
Suddenly, the figure stopped moving. Hunter and Blake readied themselves for the confrontation that they thought was ahead of them. Their hands were up, their bodies stiff, their hearts starting to pound more quickly. And then:  
  
The figure seemed to wobble a little through the haze. It swayed dangerously back and forth and then toppled over into the massive puddles forming on the ground. Hunter and Blake waited for a moment, but it didn't move. All that they could see was a blurry heap of darkness, lost in the chaotic spattering of raindrops. Blake's body relaxed a little, now out of battle stance. He took a tentative step forward before looking back at Hunter.  
  
"We should see who it is."  
  
Hunter nodded, but his hands were still in a ready position as they stepped over to the crumpled figure. Blake reached it first. He stopped and looked down. Hunter saw something change on Blake's face and he stopped a foot away from Blake and the figure. "Well?" he asked curiously.  
  
Blake turned his face to Hunter. It was a little pale.   
  
"What?" Hunter asked, a little irritated... even a little nervous.  
  
"It-" Blake said in disbelief. "It's a girl."  
  
Hunter's hands fell out of position. "A GIRL?" he repeated, jogging over. He reached Blake and looked down. Water streamed down his forehead, splashing down onto the person below him. It was a girl all right. She lay with her face half covered under sopping wet hair. Her clothes were torn and soaking wet. There was a terrible, fleshy wound on her right forearm and her left foot was twisted at a sickly angle. Her face was pale and horrifying. She almost looked dead, but she wasn't. She choked suddenly on the water pouring into her half open mouth and down her throat. She lurched, doubled over, and coughed in a way that shook her whole body.   
  
Not even pausing to think, Hunter bent down and scooped up the soaking wet, shivering figure. He dashed back to the tree and lay the girl down. Blake was right behind him. He had picked up a small tree branch and was now bending over to inspect the girl's ankle. Hunter just stared, taking a large step back. Where had he seen that face before? There was something about it... why was it so familiar? Blake touched her foot, gripped it lightly, and pushed it just a little so that it was at a healthy angle. The instant that he did, the girl jerked up, and her eyes snapped open. She screamed. Blake fell back in surprise, but caught himself and stood up next to Hunter.   
  
Hunter was holding his breath now. Her eyes.... He knew where he had seen her before. He knew who she was. As the girl fell back against the tree trunk, her eyes closing once more and her arms going limp at her sides, Hunter took a deep, disbelieving, breath.  
  
"Blake."   
  
Blake looked over.  
  
"I know who this is. And you do to, bro."  
  
Blake looked inquiringly, but there was something else there that Hunter couldn't quite read.   
  
"Blake," Hunter said again, "this is Marah." 


	5. The Newcomer

Blake looked from Hunter to the sleeping girl, then back again. "Are you sure this is her?" he asked.  
  
Hunter nodded, not taking his eyes off of Marah.   
  
"Bro, if that's really her, then why is she... here? And looking like that?"  
  
"They must be up to something."  
  
"Like what? Man, whatever happened, Marah definitely got the short end of the stick. I mean... just look at her!"  
  
Hunter stared coldly at Marah's unconscious figure. A surge of anger passed through him. This was Lothor's niece. Lothor- who had killed his parents. For that, he automatically resented her, almost as much as Lothor, and viewed her with disgust. Blake was quite the opposite. He was worried about her health. He wondered why she was on Earth, and in the middle of the forest no less. He wanted to know, but he knew that he would have to wait until Marah was better. Then she could explain.  
  
"So..." Blake ventured, "what now?"  
  
"We wait," Hunter said icily, so that even Blake shivered a little. "We wait until she snaps out of it. We won't let her out of our sight- even for a minute. If this is a trap, then we can't risk everything by trusting her. Remember, bro. This is Lothor's niece. He betrayed us, so who's to say she won't too?"  
  
****************  
  
"Bro! Come here! I think she's waking up," a distant and faintly familiar voice echoed inside Marah's aching head. She groaned and twisted where she lay. "Marah? Can you hear me?" Marah tried to open her eyes. Colors swirled around like a reflection in rippling water. She squeezed her eyes closed and tried to open them again. "Can you hear me?" Marah saw the lips of the blurry figure above her move, but the words didn't match. The sound was so far away.... Marah attempted to speak, but no words would come out. She let out a hopeless kind of whimper. "Come on bro! She's awake!"  
  
"She doesn't look like it," another familiar voice sounded from what seemed to be an even greater distance away. Marah's heart dropped inside her chest like a stone as her vision cleared and she realized that she wasn't in her bed on the space fortress. It all really had happened. 'It wasn't a dream,' she thought despairingly, but forced her eyes to stay focused now. Two familiar figures loomed overhead. One had dark hair and a serious, worried expression on what might possibly be a kind face. The other stood back a ways, his icy blue stare piercing Marah even from afar. Both men appeared to be dragging with fatigue. They didn't LOOK familiar, but then why did they SOUND familiar? Then she noticed their clothes. They were both in ninja form outfits: one with navy blue details, one with crimson red.  
  
"Can you HEAR me, Marah," the dark haired one was saying.  
  
She blinked dumbly at him. "You- are you...? It can't- you can't be the-"  
  
"We know who you are," came the shockingly bitter voice of the crimson ninja, "so you might as well not waste your time by playing dumb with us."  
  
"Hunter, I really think we should-" the dark haired one started to say.  
  
"It IS you!" Marah said suddenly, realizing who the two men must be. She sat up, causing her head to rush and her ears to pound. "The- the Thunder Rangers!"   
  
She almost sounded eager, relieved, to Hunter from where he stood. For a second his cold stare softened, but almost immediately it was icy again. "Yes. And you're the niece of the man who killed our parents."  
  
There was a long silence. Blake was angry at the thought of that too, but the look on Marah's face beat down the anger. She looked so pained by Hunter's statement, so saddened by it.  
  
"I- I didn't know," she stammered, looking straight at Hunter.  
  
"Bull. Of course you knew. All of you did. You were just playing us for your own sick twisted purposes."  
  
"Bro-" Blake started, but Hunter cut him off.  
  
"What are you really doing here?" he asked Marah, not taking his eyes off of her.  
  
Marah swallowed hard, trying with difficulty to conceal it. Her eyes were a little glassy at the sudden confrontation, but she knew that she would get no sympathy now, not with these people, even if she wanted it. She felt the Crimson Ranger's stare boring into her. She looked back up at him, blinking and focusing on nothing else but being as hard and cold as her accuser. "I didn't know the truth until after you did," she said as firmly as she could. She could feel Hunter's glare harden. "I was the only one on that -that SHIP-" she said the word with a subtle hint of venom- "that didn't know the truth." She waited for a response. Silence. "I'm telling-" her voice quavered a little. She closed her eyes for only an instant to collect herself. "I'm telling you the truth," she said more solidly. She was terrified, but she could not tear her gaze away from the Crimson Ranger's. It was locked in place. She knew that the Navy Ranger was looking at her too. However, it was clear in her mind that he was not the one who needed convincing.  
  
Hunter didn't believe Marah. 'Of course she knew,' he reassured himself. 'She's one of them.' He took a step forward. "You're setting us up. This is a trap. Admit it."  
  
Marah's hard gaze was starting to weaken. She could feel that it didn't go unnoticed either. Her eyes involuntarily filled with tears once more. A pressure grew below her eyes and in her throat. She stifled a small sob. She wouldn't look away. She had to meet the Crimson Ranger's gaze. She COULDN'T look away. Biting her lip, Marah said, "I won't admit it because it's not TRUE." At the word "true", Marah's voice shook and the phrase ended in an raw sob. A tear found its way down her cheek. She quickly brushed it away, sniffing more loudly than she would have liked.   
  
"Liar," Hunter choked. "You're lying right to my face."   
  
Blake looked at Hunter and saw his fists clenched into tight balls, his mouth a hard, thin line. "Bro, calm down a little. We-"  
  
"CALM DOWN!" Hunter cried, suddenly pulling his leaden glare from Marah to Blake. Even Marah was surprised. "DON'T TELL ME TO CALM DOWN."  
  
"I don't want to start a fight!" Blake exclaimed.   
  
"Then why are you sticking up for this- this thing?" Marah bit her lip harder, letting the insult roll off her back.   
  
"I wasn't sticking up for-" Blake glanced at Marah and stopped. "I'm just trying to be the voice of REASON!"  
  
"HA!" Hunter laughed bitterly. "It's almost like you don't CARE that our parents are DEAD and her UNCLE'S the one that KILLED them!"  
  
"How DARE you say that! You know that I miss them just as much as you do!"  
  
"Then PROVE IT!"  
  
"By what? Harassing HER? You know just as well as I do that she's harmless-"  
  
"Heartless is more like it! All of them are heartless! Look at what Lothor DID! What makes her any different?!?!" Hunter swung a wild arm in Marah's direction.   
  
"We don't have all the facts!"  
  
"STOP DEFENDING HER!!!" Hunter lunged for Blake, his face wrought with fury. "IYAAAA!!!"  
  
Blake stumbled backwards, then jerked his head up. His face was suddenly hard. Marah could only watch in fear, eyes wide. Blake met Hunter halfway in a second lunge. They kicked and twirled. It was almost beautiful to watch- almost. Hunter kicked off from a tree and flew through the air. Blake flipped backwards and caught Hunter in the stomach with his foot. Hunter yelled as her tumbled over his brother and to the ground. He rolled twice before leaping up again. But Blake was already there, knocking him back down. Hunter flipped up, his back arching, and landed on his feet. Both brothers stood with their hands up, their feet shifting weight, their chests heaving. Marah watched in wonder as they attacked each other once more, with even more fury this time. She barely keep track of who was who as arms and legs flailed everywhere. Suddenly Blake let out a yelp, and he flew back against a tree. Hunter pinned him there, one arm across Blake's throat, his face in a sneer. They stayed like that, panting, for a long time. After a while, Blake's face changed from one of anger to one of fear and sorrow. He stared almost pleadingly at Hunter, their faces just inches apart. Suddenly, Hunter's sneer was gone. The flat, stoney quality of his eyes softened, seeming to open like windows, as if seeing for the first time.  
  
"Oh my God," he whispered under his breath. "What am I doing.... Blake." Hunter dropped his arm and stepped back, horrified at what he had done. Blake slid down half a foot against the tree trunk. "Blake, I'm- I'm sorry...." They stared at each other. Finally Hunter looked down. "I'm so sorry." With that, he turned abruptly and left, his head hung down.   
  
There was a silence as Blake watched his brother disappear into the forest. He was still panting. He sighed in mild shock and disbelief. It wasn't until a few moments later that he realized Marah was still there. He turned quickly around, to find her still sitting slumped weakly against the tree, her eyes wide and her face unreadable- but sad. He kicked himself mentally. He had half expected her to have run away. That's what Hunter would have thought.... Blake turned away again; he couldn't bear to look at her. He covered his face roughly, dragging his fingers down his cheeks and sighing. After taking a minute to somewhat compose himself, Blake faced Marah once more with a stoney expression.  
  
"Let's have a look at that ankle," he said; and he was almost afraid of the hollowness in his own voice.  
  
**************  
  
"Well folks, it looks like another rainy week ahead of us."   
  
"Ugg," Dustin groaned.   
  
"Oh, come on!" Tori exclaimed, exasperated, throwing a Cheet-o at the tiny T.V. screen.   
  
The weatherman droned on: "Today will be overcast, with a twenty-five percent chance of rain. It's going to be a little chilly for Blue Bay Harbor, with highs in the mid to upper fifties...." Tori growled at the screen. "... But it might seem warmer due to full one-hundred percent chance of humidity. We might actually WANT the rain by the time night comes around! Heh heh!"  
  
"ENOUGH! Ack! I can't take it anymore!" Tori jabbed at the power button.  
  
"Hey hey, ease off on the merchandise!" Dustin said quickly.  
  
"I haven't been able to surf all weekend because of the rain! I NEED to surf." Her eyes widened with emphasis.  
  
"Well," Kelly said, coming up behind the two, hefting a huge box, "this weather hasn't been helping business too much either. People don't exactly feel compelled to do water sports when it could rain at any given moment. Oof!" she rearranged her arms around the box. "I really need to get some stalk boys..." she muttered to herself.  
  
"Well, maybe the clouds will just... disappear!" Dustin waved an oily wrench he was holding.  
  
"Nice attempt at optimism, dude," Shane laughed, stepping into Storm Chargers. "How is it that you're so dirty this early in the morning?"  
  
"Well, hello to you too," Dustin retorted.  
  
Shane paused, looking around the empty store before commenting, "Business isn't exactly boomin' is it?"  
  
"Well, considering the circumstances..." Tori threw in.  
  
"How observant of you.... You know, I could really use some help attracting customers," Kelly ventured, an idea dawning on her.  
  
Dustin recognized that look on her face instantly. The mischievous gleam in her eyes. He grinned too. "Well, I'm really tied up in here, Kel, but Tori and Shane could help you out!" Tori shot Dustin a look.  
  
"Do you think you guys COULD help me?" Kelly asked sweetly.  
  
Tori and Shane looked at each other.  
  
"I have to go do-"  
  
"Well, you see I have this THING-"  
  
"And it's really, um, IMPORTANT, and-"  
  
"I'd really love to help but I-"  
  
"Please?" Kelly broke in.  
  
Tori and Shane both stopped babbling. Shane sighed, looking dutifully at Kelly's petite figure. "What all did you have in mind?" he asked a little apprehensively. Kelly smiled.   
  
**************  
  
"This is all your fault, Shane," Tori said through her huge plush mask.  
  
"Well, I couldn't just say no!" Shane retorted. Tori pivoted awkwardly in her bulky dolphin costume to face him. Shane could barely see her face through the mesh that covered the dolphin's gaping grin, but he knew that she was glaring at him. "Hey, look it's not my fault that the costume was too small for me."  
  
"If you didn't eat so many cheese burgers..."  
  
"Hey! My diet has nothing to do with this."  
  
"Sure..."  
  
"Car!" Both rangers immediately flung up large cardboard signs, waving them around and yelling, "Come visit Storm Chargers!" Their voices trailed off and they dropped the signs as soon as the car rushed past them.  
  
"You think he could have at least had the common decency to slow down and acknowledge our presence..." Shane's voice trailed off.  
  
Tori sighed. "Oh, just give it up, Shane."  
  
***************  
  
"This is a disaster," Kapri snapped, glaring menacingly at Choobo. "And it's all your fault."  
  
"But your Highness, I-"  
  
"No excuses! It was NOT in the plan to send Marah to Earth! Who knows what horrible shape she must be in! Mind warp! That's all that was supposed to happen to her!"  
  
"The monster acted on instinct..." Choobo started.  
  
"Yes, and that's why you were ordered to get rid of him. I will NOT tolerate any mishaps so long as I'm in charge. Now, I'm ordering you to go to Earth and find my sister. Go!"  
  
"Yes, your Highness," Choobo said and scurried off.  
  
"And Choobo," Kapri called after him. He turned around just outside the doorway. "We can't afford having the Thunder Rangers join the Wind Rangers now that they don't work for us. If you find the Thunder Rangers while you're down there, kill them."  
  
*************  
  
Hunter sat at the edge of the cliff. He hated himself. What was he doing? He had attacked his own brother. Blake was all he had; how could he be so stupid as to jeopardize that? He didn't know what to do. Something had come over him... and he didn't like it. It struck a familiar chord with his dark past when he'd been working for Lothor. Hunter wasn't evil, or was he? No, he had just been seeking revenge for the death of his parents. His mind flashed back to an old memory....  
  
A very young Hunter sat on his bed, his head hung down, hiding the cut on his lip. His mother entered the room. "Hunter...." He looked away. "Honey, look at me." His mother took his chin in her hands as she squatted down in front of him. "You know violence is not the answer."  
  
"But Mom-" the little boy tried to explain.  
  
"No 'but's. I know that the same boy keeps bullying you, but that doesn't mean that you can hurt him back."  
  
"Then what was I supposed to do? Let him beat me up?"  
  
"Where was Blake?"  
  
Hunter shrugged with small, narrow shoulders.  
  
"Sweetie..." she placed a hand on his tear stained cheek. "Always remember: the sweetest revenge is success. You just keep on being the amazing boy I know you are. Trust me, you'll be happier in the end, not heading down a road of violence. You'll be happy and successful, and that bully will be neither."  
  
Hunter looked into his adoptive mother's eyes, so unlike his... but filled with love just the same. He leaned forward and wrapped his arms around her neck. "I'm sorry, Mom."  
  
"I know, sweetie. I know...."  
  
Hunter choked. His mother would be ashamed of him now. What had he become? His eyes stung. He yanked at a handful of grass and threw it off the cliff. After breathing deeply for a moment, he stood and made his way back to the clearing.   
  
***********  
  
Blake pulled the strip of cloth tightly around the stick against Marah's ankle. He knew she was trying to hide the pain she was in. She was biting her lip and her eyes were watering. "Done," Blake said, leaning back on his heels. "Are you okay?" Marah's head nodded stiffly. "Now, are you ready to talk?" She stared at him.  
  
"Blake," Hunter's voice sounded behind him. Blake turned. "I'm sorry. I- I don't know what came over me. I can't believe I would do something like that. I sorry!" Hunter's face looked extremely pained and saddened as he spoke. "You're my brother, my only family, and I would never do anything to hurt you."  
  
"I know, bro." Blake glanced at Marah before getting up and striding over to where Hunter awkwardly stood. Then, more softly, Blake said, "Marah's not going anywhere with that ankle. We can talk over here. She can't hear us if we keep our voices a bit low." His brother nodded. "So what do you think we should do with her?"  
  
"I have no idea. Figure out what happened to her, I guess. Blake... I really am sorry. I shouldn't have said those things."  
  
"I know. It's cool. You were just mad about Lothor and our parents and all. I'm sorry too." They clasped each other's hands, hugging briefly. "So, ready to interrogate?"  
  
************  
  
Marah held her breath. The pain in her leg was suddenly forgotten as the Thunder Rangers approached. She tried to sit up straight and keep her face blank. What were they planning on doing with her?  
  
"Marah, we just need to know the facts. Can you tell us why you're here? We won't interrupt you. Right Hunter?"  
  
"Um, right."  
  
Marah stared as the two sat in front of her. She was afraid. She couldn't find her voice.  
  
"Just tell us what happened," the Navy Ranger said gently.  
  
Marah looked down at her hands. She couldn't tell them. She didn't want to remember it. "Um," she started, swallowing hard. The brothers waited. "They- they drugged me," she said, keeping her gaze fixed on her lap. She could feel the air change between the brothers.   
  
"Who?" the Navy Ranger asked, clearly surprised.  
  
"I don't know. Choobo maybe," Marah told them, forcing herself to remember. "I fell asleep. When- when I woke up, Zurgane came to my room. He was- was running from something. He told me that they were going to kill him.... He said they wanted him dead...."  
  
"Dead!" both brothers exclaimed.  
  
Marah nodded. "We ran. We tried to get away, but they chased us. If I- if I hadn't fallen..." Marah stopped abruptly. "No..." she whimpered, shaking her head. "No... If I hadn't... they wouldn't have...." She coughed on a sob that had bubbled up in her throat. It was so painful to remember that night... to think that Zurgane's death could have been her fault. What if it was? What if-  
  
"What did they do to you...?" Marah looked up in surprise. Hunter had leaned forward and placed his hand on her knee. He looked concerned.  
  
"They killed him." Marah found that she was letting herself start to sob, looking into Hunter's eyes and feeling something discomforting stir inside of her. "I saw it happen. Zurgane- he told me to keep going, but I couldn't. If I hadn't tripped, he would have gotten away too." She pulled her eyes away from Hunter's, covering her face.  
  
"Then?" Blake asked.   
  
"I... I ran. They chased me and I thought that they would catch up to me...."  
  
"But they didn't," Blake finished for her.  
  
Marah nodded. "I lost them. I- I went to find Uncle and-" She stopped, sensing both brothers stiffen and shift uncomfortably. Hunter's hand retracted from Marah's knee, to her unexpected disappointment. She couldn't look at them. Her uncle had killed their parents. That was unforgivable. "I'm so sorry," Marah whispered over a stifled sob. "I didn't know what my Uncle had done. I- I didn't know!" She was crying now. She couldn't help it. She felt embarrassed and ashamed, afraid and betrayed all at once. Plus, she was in a great deal of pain. It was overwhelming.  
  
Blake and Hunter sat in silence. The air was filled with nothing but Marah's sobbing. She heard one of them sigh. Hunter stood up. He couldn't think of what to say. He had started to forget that her uncle was Lothor, until she'd mentioned him. Was Marah being genuine? It definitely seemed to be that way, but how could he know for sure? He couldn't trust her so soon, so early in the game. Blake looked up at him, reading his face. Then he nodded, as if knowing what Hunter was thinking. Blake stood up too and looked down at Marah. "We can finish this later."   
  
Marah looked up to see Blake walking away, over to the other side of the semi clearing. She waited for Hunter to do the same, but he didn't move. His face looked torn. He tugged at the cuff of his sleeve. "I'm sorry about earlier," he said quickly. A weak smile crept across Marah's face, but Hunter had turned and was walking away before he had had time to see it.   
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Another update! Was Hunter's "memory thing" too farfetched? Well, my whole story is, so never mind. What do I care? I'm the author after all! heh.... Anyway, I have loads of stuff planned for this story. I probably won't be able to use it all (the story might not make sense if I do), but I'll try to have as many of my ideas in there as possible. Thanks for all of the responses. But please, keep on reviewing! It keeps me motivated! Hope you enjoyed this chapter. I'm not really sure when the next one will be posted... hopefully soon. R&R PLEASE!!!!! And feel free to share your feelings and ask questions! I like hearing them. muches~ ECHO 


	6. Gone

A sort of routine developed over the next two days. Hunter and Blake were always on alternating shifts; one brother would guard Marah while the other went to go about their business. They didn't think that they could trust her, and Hunter was constantly reminding Blake that, after all, Marah WAS Lothor's niece.   
  
In turn, Marah felt somewhat like a prisoner. There was constant tension between herself and the Thunder Rangers. She would have loved to run away, but her ankle was in poor shape, and of course there was the obvious reality of having no where else to go. She was becoming so bored, she almost wanted to TALK to the rangers. There was nothing else to do. On the afternoon of the second full day, Marah couldn't stand the tension any longer. It was Hunter's turn to "guard" her, and he stood glaring at the back of her head while leaning against a tree. Marah could feel him watching her every slightest movement. She hated it. 'Maybe I should have stayed on the ship after all,' she thought hopelessly. A chilly breeze rustled through the forest. Marah hugged her arms around herself. Her clothes were torn pretty badly in places, so the wind went right through them. Marah shivered. She hadn't remembered it being this cold in Blue Bay Harbor, the few times that she'd been there. Another breeze followed. Her skin prickled and she rubbed her hands together.  
  
Hunter watched Marah from where he stood. It looked like she was shivering. He felt a pang of guilt. For a while he watched, throwing an idea back and forth in his head. Finally, he pulled off his jacket. "Here," he said, tossing it at Marah. It landed beside her. She looked over her shoulder from where she sat. Hunter was annoyed that she wouldn't look away. "You looked cold," he said plainly.  
  
Marah's heart sank a little. For a moment, Hunter's face had been softer than usual and sort of kind looking. But now, once again, it was hardened. If Hunter wasn't going to be nice to her, then she wouldn't be nice to HIM. "No thank you," she said over her shoulder, folding her arms. She knew it was stupid of her; she was freezing. And would it just make things worse? 'Oh well,' Marah thought and sighed inwardly, 'it's too late now.'  
  
"Suit yourself," Hunter said, but he didn't go to retrieve the jacket.   
  
After a long moment, Marah turned her head back to him. "I have to go to the bathroom." Hunter eyed her suspiciously. "Look, it's not like I'm going to go back to THAT!" She pointed up to the sky. She waited for the Crimson Ranger to respond. He just peered at her. "I'm going to go now," Marah said as she stood up, using a tree to support her.   
  
"You never finished your story."  
  
Marah turned around. "What?" She thought a moment before realizing what he was talking about. "Oh.... Well," she said finally, "I'd rather not tell you. And I don't appreciate being treated like this."  
  
"Well what did you expect? Your UNCLE killed my-"  
  
"I am NOT MY UNCLE!" It was as if a bubble had at long last burst inside of Marah. She had gotten most of her strength back over the last two days and was feeling much better apart from the cut in her arm and her twisted ankle. A few birds could be heard, rustling tree branches as they took off, startled by the sudden noise. Another gust of wind blew. Both Hunter and Marah glanced at the jacket lying on the ground. Marah was getting tired of standing and balancing herself against the tree. She turned and limped off into the forest. She found herself feeling surprised that the Crimson Ranger did not stop her, but she shrugged it off and kept limping away. She really did have to use the bathroom.  
  
When she returned, Hunter was sitting near HER designated tree. "So," he said with folded arms, "you can finish your story any time now."  
  
"No." Marah glared at him, halting ungracefully where she stood, refusing to sit down next to him.  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Because I don't want to tell you."  
  
Hunter tried to hide a mean smirk. "Well, I'm just going to sit here until you do."  
  
"I don't want to TALK about it, okay?" Marah said a little desperately. Her good leg was getting tired from hefting most of her weight. She struggled against the urge to sit, or fall over. Hunter just looked at her.   
  
"What happened on that ship?" he said after a moment. His voice was less harsh now.  
  
Marah just looked away, pretending to study a nearby bird.  
  
Hunter sighed. "Look, I won't yell at you or anything. Just tell me what HAPPENED up there."  
  
Marah looked tentatively in the Crimson Ranger's direction. "Fine," she sighed. She finally gave in and sat down facing him. "What do you want to know?"  
  
"Everything. You left off when you mentioned Lothor and you... started to cry...."  
  
"Oh. Right," Marah said, wishing that he hadn't remembered what a sobbing mess she'd been then. "I went to find... Lothor..." she ventured carefully. Hunter didn't move, so she continued. "He was in the throne room on his... throne." She glanced up at Hunter and went on. "He was tied to it. Kapri and Choobo were in there. They had this contraption that sort of came down on his head." Marah imitated the movement with her hands, bringing them down over her own head. "He was begging them to let him go... but they just ignored him."  
  
Hunter could hear her voice drifting into that far-away kind of tone. Her face was dark, looking down at her hands. Hunter was surprised by what she was telling him, but, despite himself, he believed her.   
  
"There was this... this bright blue FLASH. And then he was...."  
  
"Was what?"  
  
"Blank. He wasn't the same. Kapri asked him something and he snapped out an answer like a robot or something. I don't know what they did to him. Then they laughed at his answer, and he just SAT there..." Marah felt a dull pain growing in her chest.   
  
"What did your sister ask him?"  
  
"Huh?" Marah looked up startled. For some reason, the way he said "your sister" felt kind of personal. "She asked him... I don't remember. Oh wait!" Hunter jumped a little. "I do remember! She said, 'Who's in charge,' or something like that."  
  
"And what did he say?"  
  
Marah looked up at him with wide eyes. "'You are'."  
  
There was a silence. "Mind warp," Hunter said suddenly. Marah looked at him quizzically. "Zurgane was working on a weapon with Choobo that could brainwash just about anyone when Blake and I were still..." Hunter thought a moment. "You know... before."  
  
"Oh... Can it be reversed?"  
  
"Dunno," Hunter shrugged. "Probably."  
  
"Really?" Marah smiled, perking up. "So Uncle won't always be that way? That means I can save him!"  
  
Suddenly, everything seemed to jerk and come to a complete stop. Even the air seemed thicker... the feeling when one is jarred suddenly back into reality. Lothor was the wedge between Marah and the Thunder Rangers that could not be overcome. Marah loved her uncle. She couldn't change that, no matter how many sinister deeds he committed. And now he was in trouble.  
  
"Crimson Ranger... I know you hate my uncle...."  
  
Hunter laughed bitterly. "Hate is an understatement."  
  
"But he's my FAMILY. I can't just turn on him!"  
  
"I never asked you to," Hunter pointed out. "But it looks like your sister kind of turned on YOU, wouldn't you say?"  
  
This was not what Marah wanted to hear. "You do NOT know anything about my sister! You have no IDEA what I went through up there! You don't know anything about my family, and you CERTAINLY know NOTHING about ME!"  
  
Hunter sighed slowly, looking hard at Marah. "I know," he said quietly. "I know."  
  
Marah was panting slightly from her outburst, but now she calmed down a little.  
  
"Do you mind finishing your story now?"  
  
Marah sighed. "I don't WANT to remember it." She swallowed. Rolling her eyes at Hunter's steady gaze, she continued anyway. "After I saw what they did to Uncle, I ran. The kelzacks and that monster caught up with me. I ran to the teleporters and voila.... Here I am."  
  
"So how did you get that cut? And your ankle. Was it the monster?"  
  
Marah nodded. "The kelzacks too."  
  
"For what it's worth, I'm sorry," Hunter said, his tone unreadable. "That must have been hard for you."  
  
"I don't need your pity."  
  
Hunter shrugged and stood up; they were going in circles. The talk was over.  
  
****************  
  
Hunter sat poking the fire. The night was pitch black, and he was the only one awake. He had the second nighttime shift. As he stared sleepily at the bright flames licking hungrily at his stick, Hunter was thinking about the conversation that he'd had with Marah. She didn't seem all that bad. She walked a very fine line between good and evil; a hard path to follow for sure. Perhaps he wasn't giving her enough credit, but she was still defending her family. Had he really expected her to not? There was good in Marah, but her family devotion overpowered it, in Hunter's humble opinion. It would be up to her to figure things out. Hunter suddenly laughed at himself. He was reading WAY too into it. What did he know?  
  
He then turned his attention to Marah, who had just let out a muffled whimper in her sleep. She tossed from side to side a few times, as if struggling against some unseen force. Should I do something? Hunter wondered. Marah cried out, flinging an arm at her invisible opponent. Hunter sat very still. Marah whimpered again but then sighed sleepily and stilled after that. Hunter sighed too. She looked so peaceful and innocent just then, as if there wasn't an evil bone in her body. If only things were that simple....   
  
***************  
  
It was late morning, and the sun struggled through the thick clouds of an overcast sky. The humidity had brought the temperature up ever so slightly. At least it's warmer today, Marah thought. And at least the Navy Ranger had the morning shift; he wasn't so intimidating as his brother. Not to mention confusing.   
  
"So," Blake said from a few feet away, "I hear from Hunter that you finished your story."   
  
Marah nodded. "Yeah."  
  
"Well, don't worry. He told me about it... so you don't have to relive it again."  
  
"Thanks," Marah said with a small smile of gratitude.  
  
"If you don't mind me asking... what are you planning on doing anyway? I mean, it's been three days." The small smile on Marah's face faded and was replaced with a worried frown. "I- Well what I'm trying to say is... are you going to go back to the space fortress or not?"  
  
"I... I can't answer that yet."  
  
"I mean, we can't hold you captive forever," Blake laughed a little at the thought. "We weren't really planning on having any hostages."  
  
Marah smiled a bit too. "Yeah, I guess not."  
  
"Well, whenever you think you've made up your mind, let us know."  
  
"So what would you do if I... if I chose to go back? To the fortress..."  
  
"That's your decision, not ours. If you wanted to go back, we- I'D let you go. We wouldn't hold you back. We're not keeping you against your will, are we? We- well... I don't want you feel like that. That's not what's intended... from me anyway."  
  
"No, you're not holding me against my will." Marah shook her head. "Why does the Crimson Ranger...." Well, Marah thought, she knew exactly why he was so bitter towards her... and in general really.  
  
Blake nodded, knowing fully what Marah had started to ask. "Don't take it personally. My brother, uh, didn't take your uncle's betrayal too well. He was like that before you got here."  
  
"So he always attacks you like that?" Marah asked surprised.  
  
"Well, no..." Blake frowned deeply.  
  
"I'm sorry. I caused that, didn't I." She watched Blake look at her. It didn't appear that he was able to answer that. "Never mind. Forget I said anything. Sorry."  
  
"You don't have to keep apologizing, Marah."  
  
She opened her mouth to say something but was cut short. Just then, Hunter's voice came shouting from Blake's wrist morpher.   
  
"Bro!" the voice crackled, "get down here fast! We've got company." There was a pause. "A lot of company."  
  
"I'll be right there! But what about-"  
  
"Just take Marah with you! I'm on the beach! Just hurry up!" the voice cried above the whizzing of laser beams being fired in the background.  
  
"On our way," Blake said quickly. He looked up at Marah. "Come on, we're going down to the beach."  
  
**************  
  
Marah followed silently, Blake helping her walk as they made their way down the mountainside. Marah tried to move as fast as she could with her ankle. "I'm okay," she said finally. "I can walk on my own."  
  
"Are you sure?" Blake panted, not letting them slow down.   
  
"Yes."  
  
"All right." Blake let go of her arm, his mind on other things. Marah was surprised that she could actually walk fairly well on her own.  
  
At last they reached the forest's end and stumbled onto the soft sand of the beach. Marah gasped, catching up with Blake and halting at the sight before them. A huge swarm of kelzacks seemed to be battling each other in one large teeming mass until a glimpse of crimson could be seen at the heart of the chaos. There was a slight flash as Blake morphed beside Marah.   
  
"Stay here, or... It's your decision Marah." Blake gave her a meaningful look from behind his visor before rushing straight into the wild throng.   
  
Marah knelt behind a shrub at the beach's edge, the dark forest at her back. Frightened, she peered out to watch. Her eyes suddenly boggled out. Choobo was there. He stood at the top of a very high solid rock wall, beaten down from centuries of ocean storms and high tides. The Thunder Rangers were battling the horde of kelzacks at the base of the wall. Choobo just stood watching the battle rage on below him. Marah was shocked by the tremor of fear that ran through her at the sight of the glutinous green creature. She subconsciously prayed that he hadn't seen her. Now she was more confused than ever. She didn't know what to do, so she crouched, frozen behind the shrub... watching.   
  
The kelzacks were merciless, but neither were the Thunder Rangers. They battled with amazing poise, power, and skill. Marah longed to be able to do that. Was THAT what she wanted? Marah pushed the thought away. She crouched there for what felt like hours. Her heart was pounding, her legs were aching, her mind was racing. What to do? she thought desperately. Choobo was right there. All she had to do was step out from behind the bush and he would take her back to the ship. So why did she not move an inch? If she returned to the ship, how did she know that they wouldn't mind warp her too? Or worse... And was this the plan to kill the Thunder Rangers that was playing out before her very eyes? She couldn't bear the thought. They couldn't die. Her panicked thoughts were broken when she realized that all of the kelzacks had been defeated and had disappeared. The Thunder Rangers stood panting at the base of the rock wall. It towered ominously before them. Were they going to speak to Choobo or fight him? A new wave of panic suddenly ripped through Marah. They didn't see him! They were both leveling down into their normal state, standing unaware and now unprotected. Marah looked up at Choobo. He was pulling out a large blaster and aiming it down at them.  
  
Marah acted before she even knew what she was doing. "NO!" she screamed, leaping impulsively out onto the beach. The two brothers spun around to look at her. Hunter's startled blue gaze locked with her terrified one. "BEHIND YOU! BEHIND YOU!!!!" Marah flung her arm out and pointed over their heads at Choobo, but it was too late. A huge red ray tore through the distance between Choobo and the Thunder Rangers. It hit them both with such a force that it caused bursts of fire to explode around them. Both rangers flew backwards. "NOOO!" Marah scrambled forward. The two brothers writhed and moaned in the sand. Marah ran to them. "Oh my God.... Are you all right?"  
  
"Marah?" Choobo's voice was now behind her. She flung herself around to see him standing between her and the crashing waves beyond. She opened her mouth to speak but no words came out. She was more terrified now than ever. "Are you PROTECTING them?"  
  
Marah stammered, her eyes so wide they were about to burst from their sockets. She could hear nothing but the pounding in her ears. Her heart hammered violently against her ribs. She just wanted to disappear.   
  
"You defended them!" Choobo cried, his blaster pointing dangerously in Marah's direction. "You HELPED them!" Marah didn't even have enough breath left in her to cry out as she stared down the barrel of the weapon. But she didn't need to. At that moment, Hunter and Blake dashed in front of her; they had morphed once more. "So you have turned against us?" Choobo hollered past them.  
  
All three turned and looked at Marah. This was the question that would seal her fate.... Her mouth hung open, but she couldn't say yes... or no.   
  
"Traitor! Wait till Kapri hears this!"   
  
"I-" Marah stammered. Suddenly, Choobo fired. He meant to hit Hunter, but instead it only grazed his shoulder... and struck Marah instead.  
  
Marah could feel herself flying as the force of the blow threw her backwards. She crashed against the rock wall and slid down to the ground.   
  
Choobo stared at her limp body, stunned by what he had done. "Marah-" he started to call but was not able to finish. Blake and Hunter charged at him ferociously, shouting.   
  
Marah was in intense pain. It was as if her insides were on fire. She couldn't breathe. Her vision was blotchy, but she could see the Thunder Rangers battling Choobo furiously. Was it because of her? Marah groaned. Her head and back ached from the impact against the rock wall. She staggered to her feet and tried to steady herself. From where she'd been standing, it had looked like Choobo purposefully shot at her. Her heart grew heavy at the thought. They really had turned on her. But Marah couldn't cry, she felt hollow. Had her entire existence been meaningless? She looked over at the battle going on without her. Choobo disappeared for an instant. Marah blinked. The rangers stumbled backwards in confusion.   
  
"You're coming with me," a voice said in Marah's ear. She jumped to find Choobo now right beside her.   
  
"Get away from her!" the Navy Ranger yelled.  
  
"Your fights with us, not her," the Crimson Ranger added steadily. The two brothers started to run forward.  
  
Choobo seemed not to be phased and pushed a button on his armor. Suddenly a mob of kelzacks appeared. They swarmed around the Thunder Rangers.  
  
"NO!" Marah cried desperately. "Don't kill them! Please Choobo! PLEASE!"  
  
"I'm sorry, but orders are orders. I have to follow them." Choobo sounded a little sorry, for Marah's sake, not the rangers. He seized her arm with sticky fingers.  
  
"NOOO!" Marah struggled against his grip, kicking and punching, using every battle technique she had ever learned... but to no avail. She felt herself disappearing. Suddenly she was looking down on the Thunder Rangers, who were battling their hearts out. Hunter looked up.  
  
"MARAH!" she heard him cry out from way down below, but she was fading away. Up and up she went. She couldn't see her own body now, or Choobo's, but she could still feel his tight grip. She closed her eyes. She was going back.   
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Okay, so that's the next chapter! I would have made it longer, but it seemed like such a good place to stop! ::cackles to self:: It's funny how my stories have a tendency to write themselves. I just type for them. I had had something COMPLETELY different planned for the end of this chapter, but this is what I got instead! Hope you all enjoy it. Please please PLEASE R&R!!! I'll update again as soon as I can! 


	7. Darkness

Author's Note: I AM SO SORRY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I haven't written in forever, I know. I have been unbelievably busy, but have been thinking about this story a lot. Finally I've found some time to get the ol' creative juices flowing again and write some more! I wish I could take this chapter into more depth, but I just don't have the time right now. I haven't forgotten all of you readers who have been SO amazing and supported me so far. Please keep reading my story! I promise to write more as soon as possible (and it won't be another three months this time)! Think of this as a short (sorry again) teaser for what is to come. And trust me, there's a lot more to come. Heh heh heh... Enjoy!  
  
********************  
  
Hunter and Blake stood panting, completely stunned. They had fought off the second wave of kelzacks and were now left in total confusion.  
  
"Bro, what just happened?" Blake asked breathlessly.  
  
Hunter was at a loss for words and could only shake his head. "I have no idea," he said more to himself than to his brother.   
  
"Choobo... he shot her! Why would he do that? It's not like he wanted to kill-"  
  
"She was telling us the truth," Hunter broke in; it had just dawned on him. "She... she wasn't lying to me.... I mean, to us."  
  
"I KNEW it." Blake felt relieved. He knew which side Marah was on now, or at least he thought he did. He shuddered at the thought of what awaited her on the ship.   
  
"Choobo just... took her..." Hunter was murmuring to himself. 'She didn't want to go. She was screaming,' he thought, something welling up in his chest.   
  
"BLAKE!"  
  
Both brothers turned suddenly as a very feminine voice echoed behind them. The Wind Rangers were running up to them, Tori in the lead. Hunter glanced at Blake, who was silent. The Wind Rangers stopped fifteen feet away.   
  
"Dude, where did all the kelzacks go?" the Yellow Ranger asked dumbly. Hunter glared at him viciously, not wanting to deal with these sugary do-gooders.   
  
"We took care of them. Blake, let's get out of here." Hunter turned, but Blake hesitated. He was staring at that stupid blonde ranger. She looked pleadingly at him.  
  
"I'm sorry," was all Blake said before turning to leave with his brother.   
  
******************   
  
"NO! DON'T DO THIS TO ME!" Marah screamed at the top of her lungs, struggling as Choobo bound her tightly to Lothor's throne. The familiar dimly lit room now made her feel nauseous. The ropes practically cut off her circulation. "CHOOBO PLEASE!" she cried, watching him step over to the control panel. Kapri entered the room.  
  
"So good to see you back!" Kapri said almost genuinely.   
  
"What have you done to Uncle," Marah's voice dropped to an aversive whisper.   
  
"Just tweaked his mother board ever so slightly. Don't worry, sister. It's painless." Marah followed Kapri's gaze to Choobo. He looked up at Marah, made a nervous involuntary sound, and pressed a button.   
  
The dreaded machinery hissed as it descended down on Marah's head. "Please!" Marah whimpered, "please...." Kapri's face was blank. A thunderous crackle shook Marah. Blinding blue light surrounded her. Her heart hammered against her heaving chest. The light was painful and caused her eye lids to unwillingly stay open. Her mouth widened to scream as an inky black started to appear like smoke in front of her, but no sound came out. She was more terrified than ever before. Faster, faster the black replaced the blue light until the blue was totally gone. The black hung all around like a suffocating blanket. Marah couldn't breathe, couldn't think, couldn't move. She was paralyzed. She felt herself suddenly begin to float weightlessly towards a tiny dot of white light up ahead. Just floating. Fear left her body. She was peaceful now. She embraced the white light, smiling. It was warm and welcoming... and then... darkness.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Okay, well that's it after, like, three months of leaving this story idle, but seriously it's all I can do right now! PLEASE REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!! McGann'sGirl P.S. Thank you again to everyone who has been following this story from the beginning. And a million thanks for all of the great reviews! 


	8. Warped

"You can't just leave on the job like that!" Kelly exclaimed. "You do this all the time, and I've been letting it slide, but this is rediculous, Dustin!"  
  
"I'm sorry! I didn't have a choice! It was, uh... an emergency."  
  
Kelly studied his face. "It always is," she said softly. A pang of guilt shot sharply through Dustin. Kelly sighed. "Where WERE you?"  
  
"I..." Dunstin involuntarily glanced at the large morpher on his wrist. "I can't tell you."  
  
Kelly looked hurt. Truly hurt. "Dustin..." she looked down, not wanting to ask what was on her mind. "You're not doing... drugs, are you?"  
  
"NO!" Dustin cringed at the loud volume of his response.  
  
"Well what do you want me to say?" Kelly said, back on defensive. "Do you expect me to just ALLOW this? Why can't you tell me," she asked firmly.  
  
Dustin's mouth hung open but no words would come out.   
  
"That's what I thought," Kelly whispered, barely able to breathe.   
  
"Kelly, wait..." Dustin reached out and grabbed her shoulder as she turned away.  
  
"What. What more is there to say, Dustin. Are you going to tell me where you were? And why you always leave in such a hurry? You're shutting me out! You never used to treat me like this!"  
  
Her words stunned Dustin. He froze. He never used to treat her like this.... What had he done to their friendship? "Kelly, I never ment to hurt you-"  
  
"Well you did," Kelly tried to hide the pain swelling up inside of her chest. She swallowed hard. Why was she getting so upset over this? Dustin disappeared all the time. What made this time any different?  
  
Dustin could think of no lie to tell that would justify his actions, but he couldn't tell her the truth. Wait! Why couldn't he? He needed to go talk with Sensei. 'That's what I'll do,' Dustin thought firmly.  
  
Kelly looked pained. She could only interpret his silence one way... She turned and disappeared into the storage room, choking on the knot her throat. She leaned against the closed door and let a tear tumble down her cheek before pushing her feelings aside and focusing on her work.  
  
'That's it,' Dustin thought angrilly. He stormed off to Ninja Ops.  
  
*******************  
  
Blake sat in silence across from his brother. He couldn't force himself to think about anything but the look on Tori's face as he had turned away from her. Would she ever forgive him? He had to choose Hunter over her. He didn't have a choice. He closed his eyes, and the image of Tori's broken-hearted face shone all the more brightly.  
  
Hunter was lost in thought. Everything felt cold and empty. He had nothing. He was hurting Blake somehow and he knew this. He was surprised to find his thoughts drifting to Marah. It was odd that it felt as if something were missing now that she was gone. He was stuck in a ditch that he couldn't crawl his way out of. Blake had that pathetic blonde twig to pine for and the willingness to join forces with the Wind Rangers. He still had hope and faith in other people, despite all they had been through. And what did Hunter have? A dull pain in his chest? A desolate mind-set? An empty thirst for revenge? He didn't even have Marah to unleash his anger on now. He truly did have nothing. He was holding back his brother from a relationship and a chance at happiness. Blake NEEDED some happiness in his life. Hunter tried to give that to him through their comroderie, but obviously it was not enough. Overwhelmed, Hunter sank his face into his hands. What could he do now? Had he burned all his bridges? 'There has to be something I can do,' he frowned inwardly. 'Anything.'  
  
*****************  
  
"Now what?" Choobo asked cautiously. He was sitting across the table from Kapri. She looked more menacing than ever. Marah and Lothor sat together, staring blankly at the wall. A chill ran down Choobo's spine. "They give me the creeps."  
  
"Suck it up," Kapri spat, not looking up from the paper thin computer screen she held in her hands.   
  
Choobo shifted uncomfortably. He glanced at Marah and Lothor, then quickly looked away. The dimly lit throne room was completely silent.   
  
"AAAAAA!" Lothor suddenly lurched up to his feet. Choobo, Kapri, and an empty Marah all looked at him. Lothor fell to the floor, shaking violently. His eyes rolled back into his head.  
  
"UNCLE!" Kapri rushed over. "Uncle!" She pulled back in horror. He was having a seizure.   
  
A swarm of kelzacks skidded to a halt in the doorway, backing up the hallway. The room was filled with Lothor's grunts and shrieks as he jerked uncontrollably.   
  
After a long time, he fell motionless. Kapri turned him over onto his back with a trembling hand. "U- Uncle...?" her voice quavered. "Uncle?" she shook him slightly. He didn't move. His wide eyes stared up, unseeing. He wasn't blinking. He wasn't breathing. "Uncle?" Kapri shook him more forcefully, her voice becoming urgent. "UNCLE!" she wailed and collapsed on his broad chest. She let raw sobs tear through her entire body. "What have I done to you?" she wimpered between sobs. Choobo stood in shock.  
  
"Is he... Is he dead?"  
  
Kapri's head snapped up, her eyes flashing dangerously. "GET OUT! GET OUT! ALL OF YOU!" Kapri was up on her feet in seconds. Her voice was wrought with emotion, a rare glimpse into her soul. Her face was completely soaked with tears. Pink banges clung to her forehead. "OUT!" she screamed with everything she had left in her. The kelzacks scurried away, followed by a cowardly Choobo.   
  
Kapri held Lothor's body to her chest. "What have I done..." she wailed, rocking him back and forth. Suddenly she looked up. Marah was staring at her with vacant eyes. Kapri thought she would vomit at the sight. She could only cry harder.  
  
****************  
  
"She needs our help," Blake was saying. Hunter stared at the camp fire, digging his boot into the forest soil. "Who knows what they've done to her. That mind-warping technology is risky business. I can't even imagine what the side effects could be like."  
  
"Neither can I."  
  
"Well, what are we going to do about it? Just sit here?"  
  
"No. We need a plan," Hunter said, his mind already racing with possible strategies. "We need to get on that ship...."  
  
"Hunter." Blake was frowning. "You'll kill Lothor when you see him. If we go up there, you won't be able to focus on rescuing Marah...."  
  
"DON'T TELL ME WHAT I'LL DO."  
  
"Bro-" Blake started.  
  
Hunter waved the comment away. He now remembered Lothor. "What if they WANT us to do this?" he thought aloud. "Try and save poor little Marah. They'd have us right where they want us!"  
  
"Hey, I thought you were finally siding with Marah..."  
  
"WE CAN'T BE SURE. Look how long we believed in her uncle! Look how convincing he was!"  
  
"That was different! We were so caught up in our grief that we-"  
  
"I STILL AM."  
  
Blake could not think of what to say to this. Whatever he did say, Hunter took the wrong way. It was impossible to reason with him. "Look, let's sleep on it, okay? We'll decide what to do in the morning."  
  
"Fine," Hunter spat. He jerked his blanket about himself and lay down, not uttering another word.  
  
******************  
  
"Sensei, this is impossible! I can't lie to Kelly any more!" Dustin was pacing back and forth in front of the wise man-turned-guinea-pig. "I can't stand it."  
  
"Do you understand the consiquences that could occur should you reveal your true identity to her?" Sensei asked calmly.  
  
"The Yellow Ranger is NOT my true identity. DUSTIN!" he pointed to himself. "DUSTIN is my true identity." Almost instantly he regretted the utterance.  
  
The Sensei only nodded. "You do not want you destiny to interfere with your friendship."  
  
"Well, when you put it that way..." Dustin kicked himself mentally.   
  
"Dustin," Sensei brought the young man's attention back to him, "when the time comes to tell her, you will know. Do you trust me?"  
  
"I do, Sensei. I do... But HOW will I know?"  
  
Sensei grinned, having predicted that Dustin would ask this question. "When the times comes, it will feel right."  
  
"So I WILL tell her?" he asked anxiously. "When the time comes?"  
  
"She is close enough to you that your secret will be safe with her. You trust her as well, do you not?"  
  
"Well, yeah. Of course I do. I just..."  
  
"Go," Sensei chuckled.   
  
"Right." Dustin bowed slightly before exiting on unsure feet. "The right moment," he repeated to himself. "Wait for the right moment...."  
  
**************** Kapri stepped rigidly into the throne room. Choobo was strapping Marah to the chair. "Are you sure you want to do this?"  
  
"Yes," Kapri said coldly through gritted teeth. Tears welled up in her eyes, but she refused to break down again. Once was enough. "I don't want her to die too."  
  
Choobo nodded hurridly and dashed over to the control panel. Waving his fingers, he selected a sequence of buttons. Once more the machine hissed and decended on the silent girl's head. There was a crackling blast of strange orange light.   
  
"Why is it orange?" Kapri hollored above the noise.   
  
"Probably due to the reverse mechanism," Choobo called back.   
  
Moments later, the light disapated. There was silence.  
  
Marah sat blinking. Where was she? She felt physically sick as she looked around and realized where she was. Memories came flooding back to her. Had she been mind-warped? She couldn't remember anything after being strapped, kicking and screaming, into the chair and being taken over by a frightening darkness. Now she was in the throne again, and it felt as if no time had passed. She stared at Kapri.   
  
"What did you do to me?" she asked carefully, afraid her voice might fail her. She was surprised to see the foreign expression on her cold-hearted sister's face. Was it guilt? Something wasn't right. "What happened? Kapri? Tell me!"  
  
Karpi's eyes glazed over and became cold and distant. "Our uncle is dead."  
  
The word slammed heavily against Marah's chest, laboring her breathing, tightening her throat. She stammered. "D-dead...?" Kapri said nothing. "DEAD?" Marah could not feel the pain, in fact she could not feel anything. She sat frozen, then looked down and tried to sort things out in her head. But it made her dizzy trying to think. It was the only thing she could feel now. Fluttering eyelids drooped down and closed heavily as Marah fell limp in the chair. She had fainted.  
  
"Take her to her bedroom," Kapri said dimly. "Let her sleep off the post-shock of the mind-warping proceedure.  
  
"Yes, your highness."  
  
"And Choobo?"  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"Make sure a kelzack stands guard outside her door."  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Okay, so that's my chapter! Can't you just feel the tension? Bwahahahaha. Don't worry... I won't start power tripping and kill off everyone ("It's MY story! Mine! Mine I tell you!), just Lothor... for now. Heh heh. That's all I have time to write right now, so enjoy it! Only one person actually reviewed the last chapter... PLEASE REVIEW!!! Please? Pretty please? *bats eyelashes*   
  
~McGann'sGirl~ 


	9. Hate is Blind as Love

Marah sat on her bed, thin legs drawn up beneath her chin. She stared at the floor. There was a shuffle of feet outside the room as her kelzack guard slid a tray of food through the door. Her eyes lifted slowly... heavily to watch. The kelzack set the tray on her vanity, then closed the door tightly; the lock clicked as if leering at Marah. She didn't move; hunger was one of the countless feelings which she no longer remembered.   
  
Her room was a prison now. Whenever she left her room, a kelzack followed close behind. She didn't know her sister any longer. Kapri had changed. Choobo was no less creepy than usual, and her uncle was... dead? This, Marah could not make herself believe. How could it be true? It felt as if he would walk into her room any day now and explain everything. And what about the Thunder Rangers? They were almost always present in her dreams, always just out of reach and not interested in helping her. It only made Marah feel worse to think about the fact that they hadn't made a rescue attempt yet. They had probably forgotten all about her. Hunter never had warmed up to her anyway.   
  
Marah's brain was numb from so much betrayal and loss in such a short period of time. In only a few weeks, her entire life had completely come undone. Her heart was no longer warm and accepting, but was instead cold as stone, heavy in her chest. She was incessantly tired and spent most of her time in a sickly slumber filled with unsettling nightmares; there was nothing good left to dream about. With each passing day, Marah's soul was crushed smaller by the clenched fists of depression.  
  
*******************  
  
Hunter raced down the endless hallway. Kelzacks were firing at him from behind, but he couldn't turn around to fight. He had to get to Marah. A fiery laser beam found his shoulder. Hunter yelped in pain but kept running. His heart was pounding and his breath was labored. Keep going, he told himself, keep going... for Marah. At last he reached a door at the very end of the corridor. He opened it. "Marah!" he called as he flung open the door, but stopped short. Lothor and Kapri held a struggling Marah tightly between. Kapri held a gun to her head. "Marah." He stared at her tear-stained face, her huge bottomless eyes. She looked pleadingly at him.  
  
"Don't take another step, Crimson Ranger," Lothor sneered. "Or I'll kill her... just like I killed your loving parents."  
  
"Don't you dare hurt her!" Hunter screamed in a hot wave of rage.  
  
"Oh, calm down. Honestly. You were always so emotional."  
  
"Shut up! You wouldn't have the guts to kill your own niece!"   
  
Marah's face changed. She stared at him with eyes overflowing with terror. She nodded and mouthed silently, her lips quivering, "Yes, he would."  
  
Hunter's heart seemed to stop. He pulled his gaze away from her and stared at Kapri's finger, which was sitting tensely on the gun's trigger. If she fired, Marah would be dead instantly. He stood frozen.   
  
In a sudden rush, the kelzacks swarmed into the room behind him. At that moment, Hunter lunged forward. Kapri jumped, her gun firing haphazardly.  
  
"NO!" Hunter wailed as he heard Marah let out a scream that stopped his blood cold. He rushed to her side. She lay helplessly on the floor. "Marah..." he choked. "You can't- I was just about to- I was coming to-"   
  
Marah's eyelids fluttered. She gazed wearily up at him. "I know..." She lifted a hand to his cheek. "You were coming to save me."   
  
"Yes! Yes! Please just hang on! Don't let them win!"  
  
"They already have," Marah whispered, as if it was painful.  
  
Hunter looked up. Everyone was gone. Lothor, Kapri, and the hoard of kelzacks had all vanished. He and Marah were now in the middle of a field, colorless and dry, lit by a heavy blood-red sky. Black clouds swirled in slow, sickly patterns above their heads. Hunter couldn't breathe. He couldn't think straight.  
  
"Hunter..." He looked back down at Marah. Her fingers curled stiffly against his cheek. "Thank you..."  
  
"Marah-" Hunter started as the girl's hand fell to the ground. She smiled up at him before sighing and closing her eyes. "Marah? Marah, don't leave me! I came for you! Don't go!" Hunter shook his head. "This can't be happening...."  
  
******************  
  
"NO!" Hunter screamed as he flung himself upright. He sat panting in the darkness. "A dream," he realized aloud, "it was just a dream..." He wiped his sweat-drenched face with his sleeve before sinking back down onto his blanket. Trying to steady his breathing, Hunter stared at the dark abyss above his head.   
  
"Hunter?" a sleepy voice mumbled nearby in the pitch-black night. "Was that you?"  
  
"Yeah," he panted, "sorry."  
  
"It's fine... are you okay?"  
  
"Just a dream. That's all."  
  
"Okay..." There was a long silence.  
  
"It's been too long, Blake. We need to get Marah out of there," Hunter said suddenly. "She could be in serious danger right now."  
  
"I know," Blake nodded, pulling out a flashlight and flicking it on. "So you really think that you're ready?"  
  
"I've BEEN ready."  
  
"All right... let's do it then."  
  
"Let's do it."  
  
******************   
  
Dustin stepped into Storm Chargers, the door jingling and closing behind him. Kelly was unloading a box in the far corner of the store near the dressing rooms. "Sorry I'm late... my alarm clock... it's really dysfunctional..." he attempted, but Kelly didn't respond. "Um," Dustin stared at the back of her head, "I really am sorry... about everything."  
  
"Fine," Kelly said shortly, not looking up.  
  
Dustin shifted nervously. "Okay then... I'll leave you alone and get to work."  
  
"I think that'd be best," Kelly muttered as she tore the plastic off of a display skate-board.  
  
Dustin nodded and went behind the counter. "This is a mess," he sighed to himself, sinking down onto his work stool.   
  
"Hey Kelly," Tori said cheerfully, entering the store. Dustin looked up.  
  
"Hey," he heard Kelly murmur, unaffected.   
  
"Dustin...?" Tori asked with a confused look on her face as she slipped behind the counter. "What's with her?" she asked softly. "Things seem to have been a little... tense... between you two lately. What's going on?"  
  
"Nothing."  
  
"Okay..." Tori was smiling smugly.  
  
"Not THAT kind of 'nothing'!" Dustin whispered harshly.  
  
"Fine!" Tori threw her hands up. "Just asking."  
  
Dustin opened his toolbox.   
  
"So what do you think about the Thunder Rangers?"  
  
"What about them?"  
  
"Do you think I should go look for them?"  
  
Dustin stopped his tinkering. "Are you serious?"  
  
"Well, sure! I mean, it's not like it's illegal or something..."  
  
"Dude, did you hear the way Hunter spoke to us? They don't want anything to do with us!"  
  
"Well, Hunter maybe... but not Blake."  
  
"Tori," Dustin sighed, "do you really want to pursue something with him?"  
  
"I don't know... maybe," Tori shrugged, looking suddenly downcast. When Dustin didn't respond, she said, "Fine! I won't go looking for them! I'll just go surf instead. At least the weather's warming up again."  
  
Once Tori was gone, Kelly stepped softly behind the counter, carrying her half-empty box. It was clear to her that Dustin just didn't want to be friends with her anymore. She saw how close he was to Tori... He used to be like that with Kelly, but something had changed. She paused at the door to the back room. Barely glancing over her shoulder, she could tell that Dustin was staring at her. Quickly she looked away and trudged into the storage room without a word.   
  
*****************  
  
"Are you ready for this?" Blake asked.  
  
"We've been 'preparing' for it all friggen day. It's already dark out. Of course I'm ready."  
  
"Kapri will know that we're on the ship the second we appear in the teleporters. We'll have to make this fast. Do remember the plan?"   
  
Hunter said nothing; his gaze was fixed on the expanse of sky overhead.  
  
"We'll get Marah and LEAVE. No looking for Lothor."   
  
"All right!"  
  
Blake sighed and nodded. "Okay." The brothers looked at each other. It was obvious that Hunter was nervous, though he would never admit it. His saline eyes were wide and stormy, his lips thin and tight over clenched teeth. He nodded to Blake.  
  
"No turning back now."  
  
They both tensed up as they got ready to propel themselves up into space when suddenly-  
  
"WAIT!" The two rangers whirled around.  
  
"T- Tori?" Blake stammered. "What are you doing- How did you find us?"  
  
"I had to see you. Once I had an idea of where you were..."   
  
Hunter watched the two gazing blissfully at each other.  
  
"... I couldn't stay away," Tori finished.  
  
"Sorry to brake this up, but we have some incredibly important business to attend to," Hunter snapped, having no patience to watch a romantic reunion progress when Marah's life was at stake somewhere above them, past the atmosphere.  
  
"Blake-" Tori said pleadingly. "Don't leave now... please."  
  
"I have to go. Wait here. I'll be back really soon, I promise."  
  
"No! I'm not waiting any longer!"  
  
"Tori-"  
  
"No!"  
  
The two jumped as Hunter morphed behind them. Blake took the hint.  
  
"I really have to go. It's urgent."  
  
"But..."   
  
Hunter rolled his eyes inwardly, seeing the girl's eyes start to water. "Look, whatever your name is... We don't have any time to waste convincing you to stay here! Do you want to be the cause of someone's death?"   
  
"Tori," Blake reached out and grabbed her hand, "I swear, I wouldn't leave like this if it weren't completely necessary. Do you believe me?" He looked intensely at her.  
  
"Yes," she nodded. "I believe you."  
  
"All right then," Blake let her hand go. "Wait right here." He turned to face a VERY impatient Hunter. "Let's go." The two brothers shot up in twin beams of light. They didn't even realize that a third followed close behind them.  
  
*****************  
  
Kelly stepped out the back door of Storm Chargers. The day had flown by and now it was already nighttime. She looked up at the brilliant stars in the sky, sighing. She began walking down the ally towards the street when suddenly a dark figure appeared in front of her. She gasped.   
  
"Hey there," the figure sneered.  
  
"What do you want."  
  
In the faint glow from the street lights, Kelly could see the man grin. She took a step back.   
  
"Don't even think about it," the man growled, pulling out a shot-gun. Kelly froze, barely ten feet from the back door to Storm Chargers. "Gimme your purse," the man motioned to her messenger bag.   
  
Silently, Kelly tossed it on the ground and kicked it towards him. She tried to inch away as he started to dig through the bag. "STOP!" he shouted, looking up. His gun gleamed dangerously. Kelly stopped moving again. She held her breath. "Where's your wallet?"  
  
"Wha- what?" Kelly's voice was shaking.   
  
"Your wallet! Wait... I know..."  
  
Kelly shivered nervously.  
  
"I bet it's in your pocket...."  
  
Kelly's heart stopped. "Ye- yes. Let me just get it out-"  
  
"NO! I'll get it..." the man grinned menacingly. He started to walk forward.   
  
"Please, just take my money... It's all I have... please..." Kelly started to shake with fear as the man took a final step and stopped mere inches from her face. She gulped, keeping her chin up but lowering her gaze to his gun, which was still pointed at her chest. She yelped as she felt his hand suddenly dive into her back pocket. She could feel his fingers curl around the wallet, but he didn't remove it.  
  
"Well, you're a lot prettier up close... you know that?"  
  
Kelly sucked in her breath.  
  
"Did you?" he grunted, ramming her against the ally wall.   
  
Kelly let out a scream. She thought she would pass out from the insane pounding of her heart. She could no longer breathe. Her mind was flooded with terror. She screamed again as he lowered his lips to her neck. She pounded her fists desperately against the man's chest and tried to kick her knee up, but he was far too big to take on.   
  
"Oh, a feisty one," he groaned in her ear. In the next horrifying instant, Kelly realized that he was ripping open her jacket... and then her shirt.   
  
"NO!" she screamed as he tossed the jacket aside. "SOMEONE HELP ME! ANYONE! HELP ME!" The man clamped one large hand forcefully over her mouth, digging his gun into her ribs.   
  
"You'll pay for that one..." his growled, his gaze falling on her partially unbuttoned shirt. He plucked at her name tag. "... Kelly." She struggled beneath his tight grip. The man stroked his gun against her collarbone. She kicked and squirmed but to no avail. She let out huffed whimper under the suffocating restraints of his hand. The man leaned in again.  
  
"STOP!" Both Kelly and the man turned their heads to see a bright flash of yellow. The Yellow Power Ranger appeared at the dark end of the ally, near the back door to Storm Chargers. "Drop the gun." Kelly stared in total disbelief. A wave of hope washed over her. The man tightened his grip on her. A muffled cry escaped her lips as she stared at the Yellow Ranger. "Drop the gun," he said again. There was something familiar in his voice that stirred Kelly.   
  
"Don't take another step! I'll shoot!" the man cried.  
  
"No you won't," the Yellow Ranger said calmly. He fired his own strange looking weapon and shot the gun right out of the attacker's hand. The man yelped, let go of Kelly, and backed away. The Yellow Ranger fired another golden laser at the man's feet. He scrambled out into the deserted street and ran away, leaving Kelly's bag lying in the middle of the ally. Kelly slid down the wall, feeling her legs give way beneath her. She stared up at the Power Ranger through blurred eyes. She was gasping for air. The Yellow Ranger rushed forward. Kelly pushed herself away, looking quizzically at the ranger's strange behavior.   
  
"Thank you," she attempted to say, though her voice cracked. "Thank you so much."  
  
"Kelly-"  
  
Her eyes grew wide. "H- how'd you know my- my name...?"  
  
"Kelly- it's me." The Yellow Ranger pulled off his helmet.  
  
****************  
  
Hunter looked around, taking in his surroundings. He had made it. The familiar red glow and strange spongy walls triggered unreadable emotions that bubbled up and pressed against his chest. He knew that he was standing in a teleport cell. He knew that he was on the ship. He knew that Marah was only minutes away now. He took in a faltering breath.   
  
"Hunter?" Blake's face appeared around the corner of the outlet. He sighed with relief. "Good, you made it."  
  
"Of course I made it," Hunter whispered sharply, his mind on other things. He stepped out into the hallway.  
  
"Do you even remember what way to go from here?" Blake asked quietly.  
  
"Forward," Hunter muttered. "This is a dead end hallway." He took a step down the hall but stopped. Both brothers turned in shock as another figure appeared in the teleport. There was a weighted silence.  
  
"TORI?" Blake exclaimed. He winced, then continued in a more hushed tone, "What are you doing here?"  
  
"I'm coming with you."  
  
"No. You're not," Hunter sputtered angrily. "And keep your voice down." He couldn't believe the nerve of this girl!   
  
"You have to leave, Tori," Blake stepped in front of Hunter, afraid he might snap.  
  
"You're going after Lothor, right? Let me help you!"  
  
Blake flinched, knowing what was in store.  
  
"Quiet! You don't know what the hell you're talking about! Get out of here! Now!" Hunter whispered harshly. He couldn't take any more of Tori's ignorance.   
  
"Listen," Blake whispered in a rush to Tori, "there isn't enough time to explain. We're not here for Lothor. We're here to save someone. Any minute now, Kapri is going to send a bunch of kelzacks down here, so Hunter and I need to get going. Go back, Tori. Please."  
  
It wasn't a request, it was an order and Tori knew that. But she wanted to help them. If someone was in trouble, couldn't they use an extra hand? "Power Rangers help people. Let me help you help whoever it is you're trying to save."  
  
"We're not TRYING to save anyone! We're GOING to save her and you're going to leave!" Hunter was reaching his limit.  
  
"NO!"  
  
"Take her BACK to Earth, Blake," Hunter growled through clenched teeth.  
  
"You can't do this alone."  
  
"Yes I can, just take her!"   
  
Blake moved more quickly than Hunter could follow. In less than a second, Blake had thrown Tori into an outlet and pressed the button.  
  
"NO!" Tori shouted, latching onto Blake's arm.  
  
"Let go, Tori!" Blake exclaimed in a panic. If she kept her hold until she started to disappear, his arm would go with her. He didn't want to lose an arm. However, Tori was too caught up with emotion to think of that. Hunter watched the scene unfold and acted quickly. He shoved Blake into the cell with the girl just before the two started to fade.   
  
Tori's face suddenly fell. "Oh no. Oh my God, what have I done? Blake get out! I'll go! Just stay here and save that person! Hunter! Turn-" Tori was cut off as the two vanished abruptly.  
  
"It's too late for that," Hunter panted, staring at the now empty outlet. For a moment, he just stood, sorting out what had just happened. Could he really blame that girl? Maybe she cared so desperately about his brother that she wasn't thinking straight. Maybe she cared so much that... "Marah," Hunter said aloud. He would save her... alone if he had to. He wasn't about to let his nightmare come true. Suddenly, a red laser beam shot past him, hitting the teleport's mother-board. It sparked and flickered. Hunter spun around. An army of kelzacks stood before him, weapons all up... and aimed directly at his head.  
  
****************  
  
"Blake..." Tori whimpered as the two appeared in the middle of the forest. He yanked his arm out of her grip.  
  
"I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU DID THAT!" he screamed. "YOU HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO IDEA WHAT YOU HAVE JUST DONE!"  
  
"I'm so sorry, Blake... I don't know what came over me!"  
  
"THIS COULD BE HUNTER'S DEATH! HE'S ALL ALONE UP THERE AT THIS VERY MOMENT! YOU SAW HOW MANY KELZACKS THERE WERE!"  
  
Tori let out a sob. She watched with tear-filled eyes as he prepared to launch himself into the cosmos once more.   
  
And Blake was trying. There had to be something he was doing wrong. Why wasn't it working? "No," he said, realizing what the root of the problem must be. "NO!" he screamed again into the night. Slumbering birds awoke and took flight in a frantic rustle of tree branches. Tori shuddered.   
  
"They broke the teleporter," Blake cried in disbelief. "THEY BROKE THE GOD DAMN TELEPORTER!" He knelt to the ground, pounding an angry fist down into the soil. Hunter would surely die. There was no way that he could take on all the kelzacks Tori and Blake had seen behind him. "DAMMIT!" he wailed helplessly. "I'm so sorry Hunter... I'm so sorry."  
  
Tori was too afraid to speak. She knew what she had done. She was overwhelmed with guilt, grief, shame. She didn't know what to do. She couldn't move. She let out another sob.   
  
****************  
  
Kelly gasped and fell backwards in shock. Her mouth hung open. "Dust- Dustin?" she stammered in disbelief. "Is that YOU?" Her hand moved to cover her trembling lips.  
  
"It's me, Kelly, it's me.... This is what I've been keeping from you." Dustin took a step forward, seeing that Kelly was struggling to keep from crying.   
  
"You saved me," Kelly whispered, hot tears beginning to tumble down her cheeks. "You- you're a Power Ranger! I can't believe it! I can't believe... " Her voice trailed off and she stifled a sob. "Oh, Dustin, I'm so sorry. I should have trusted you! I should have-"  
  
"No," he broke in, dropping his helmet and kneeling down in front of her. "I should have told you sooner. I'm the one who should be sorry..."  
  
Kelly couldn't keep it in any longer. She let out a loud sob, then another, then another. She couldn't stop crying once she had started, her guarded emotions all pouring out as the wall crumbled in this man's presence. She lowered her face into her hands, ashamed to be crying in front of Dustin.  
  
"Kelly..." Dustin leaned forward, but she pulled away, not wanting to be toughed, still deeply shaken by the attack... and Dustin suddenly knew why. His breath caught in his chest as he realized, with trepidation, that Kelly's shirt had been torn partially open. Her hair was disheveled, her face was wet with tears and smudged with some sort of car grease from the attacker's hands. Another long streak of grease ran across her exposed collar bone. Dustin stared in horror but snapped out of the shock, fore Kelly was crying harder now. "Oh... Kelly, I'm so sorry." He impulsively wrapped his arms around her trembling figure. He felt her freeze under his touch. "I'm not letting you go," he cried, finding that his voice was shaking as violently as Kelly's body. His eyes were watering and his throat was tightening at the sight of his friend in such agony.  
  
Kelly let out another sob and grabbed onto the golden fabric over his chest. She buried her face into Dustin's chest, letting all of her built-up emotions finally come out through tears. "It's okay," she heard Dustin whisper into her hair, his chin resting on her shoulder. "It's okay now..." She curled up against him, feeling his arms wrap more tightly around her.  
  
After a while, Kelly's sobbing started to subside. She hated to pull back from the embrace but she had to. She sniffed and wiped her tears away as she leaned back. She traced the emblem on Dustin's uniform with her trembling fingers. "Wow." The word was barely audible as it escaped her lips, riding out on a shaky sigh. She hesitantly looked up at Dustin. He was looking at her with more worry than ever before. Kelly's face softened. "Wow," she said more loudly. "You're a Power Ranger."   
  
Dustin laughed hoarsely and brushed the auburn hair from Kelly's face. "Yep." It felt so good to tell her. It was an amazing release. He hadn't yet retracted his arms from around her, but he didn't want to. Kelly's hands were still resting on his shoulders. Kelly just couldn't stop staring at the uniform, the helmet sitting beside them... Dustin himself. She was so happy, all she could think to do was laugh, and laugh she did. Loudly.   
  
The two sat there in the ally, the aftermath of the night's events all around them: Kelly's bag lying opened on the ground, a burnt spot where Dustin had fired at the attacker's feet, Dustin's helmet sitting on its side, Kelly's jacket thrown across the ally floor. And yet they laughed. They laughed as hard as they had before Dustin's little secret, before they had begun to drift apart. They laughed with relief, but something was different now. Neither one could identify what it was, but it was there... this new air between them. An air that was free, unencumbered, trusting... and something else.  
  
"Um," Kelly started. Her laughter faded, as did Dustin's. They looked at each other with uncertain eyes.   
  
"Yeah..." Dustin said, removing his arms from around her. "Sorry, I was just... you know... you were crying and-"  
  
"Dustin." Kelly slid her hand into his. What am I DOING? she thought nervously. She considered pulling her hand out of his, but it suddenly felt as if it were glued there. Dustin stared down at the unfamiliar sight and gulped, then looked up into her eyes. She looked as anxious as he felt. "Thank you," Kelly said softly, "for everything."  
  
Dustin gave a weak smile. "You're, uh, you're welcome..." His response was followed by an awkward silence. With an unsure hand, Dustin impetuously cupped Kelly's face, running his thumb roughly across her tear-stained cheek. He had absolutely no idea what he was doing. He stared into her eyes, afraid to voice all the things running through his head. Kelly returned the stare. She was nervous, but she couldn't make herself stop what was happening. She shifted so that she could lean into Dustin. She went weak as he pulled her hand to his chest. She suddenly flooded with emotion. Dustin's heart was racing as rapidly as hers.   
  
Dustin couldn't stand it any longer. His gaze lowered to Kelly's lips then back up again. He pulled her against his chest. Before he even knew what he was doing, Dustin had tilted her face up and was brushing his lips against hers.   
  
****************  
  
Hunter fought harder than he had ever fought before. He ran head first into the mass of kelzacks and battled his way through. He froze as a laser hit him in the shoulder. It was just like his dream. "NO!" he cried, knocking more kelzacks away. He stumbled and fell on their feet. They piled on top of him. Hunter could barely breathe under the weight. He screamed in agony as a knife sliced into his side. He gasped at the unbelievable pain. Now he could not even move. There was no way he could do this. Not without help. But what about Marah? A new wave of energy passed through him. He would fight the kelzacks off and get to her. He had to save her. He cried out in pain, swinging his arm back and knocking one off of him. Then another. Hunter flipped over and kicked two off at once. He jumped to his feet, forgetting the pain, and ran. The kelzacks were right behind him. Suddenly, it was as if he was reliving the dream. He was panting. He was in incredible pain. Kelzacks were behind him in hot pursuit. The hall seemed to go on forever. I'll fail this time too, Hunter thought hopelessly.  
  
He snapped out of it when he saw another hall branching off up ahead. It looked right to him. He turned into it with a new confidence. This wasn't his dream. He could still make it work. He just couldn't give up. There: a row of doors. Hunter saw a kelzack standing guard outside the farthest one. That had to be Marah's room. Suddenly, Hunter was scared. He didn't know why, but he was suddenly very aware of the reality of the situation. He pushed his fears aside, firing at the kelzack. It fell back against the door and crumpled to the floor.  
  
With a deep breath, Hunter opened the door. Marah was standing wide-eyed before him. Hunter snapped his helmet visor back. He acted without thought, having no time to realize the awkwardness of their reunion. "It's me, Marah. Come on we need to go!" He grabbed onto her wrist. She stared dumbly down at his hand. "Marah?"  
  
"You came..." Marah said with eyes huge in disbelief.   
  
"Yeah," he panted. They stared at each other for a long moment. A laser hitting the door frame beside Hunter's head snapped them out of it. "Come on, we need to move." He pulled her out of the room. They ran down the hall.   
  
"I know another way back to the teleporter," Marah panted beside him.   
  
"Lead the way." They ran as fast as humanly possible. Marah was a little shaky, but she forced herself to move, to think. She felt sick and confused. This didn't feel real. This felt too real. She stumbled to halt. Hunter crashed into her back. Marah was too stunned to notice. The teleporter's motherboard was blackened with damage. The lights were not on.   
  
"Oh no," Hunter suddenly remembered what had happened to the machinery earlier.   
  
"I can fix this!" Marah cried, desperation kicking in. She looked at Hunter. He was scared. She could actually see the fear. It was written all over his face. "I can do this," she said again, placing a shaky hand on his arm. He nodded.   
  
"I'll keep watch. The kelzacks can't be far behind us." Each minute lasted forever. Hunter's heart was pounding so hard, he could barely hear the cackle as Kapri rounded the corner. Hunter fired his gun. It bounced off of a strange wall of rippling green that appeared in front of the woman.  
  
"A rescue attempt?" she laughed viciously. "HA!"  
  
Hunter clenched his fists. He could feel Marah standing right behind him, her hand just barely touching the small of his back. He heard her breathing stop beside his ear. "It's not fixed yet," she whispered with a tremor of fear. Hunter sucked in his breath.  
  
Kapri watched in amusement. "Well," she scoffed, "you just fell into my lap, didn't you, Crimson Ranger?"  
  
"Don't hurt him!" Marah shouted, holding onto Hunter's arm and stepping out beside him.   
  
"Marah, don't do this," Hunter chocked out through gritted teeth, trying to push her back.   
  
"As fun as it is to watch you two, I'm afraid I'm going to have to break it up." Kapri snapped her fingers with a alarming grin. The kelzacks had been hiding around the corner and now stepped into view. Marah's mouth fell open. Hunter snapped his visor back up.  
  
"Oh, that won't help you," Kapri chuckled crudely. The kelzacks surged forward around her like river water around a rock. They overtook Hunter, surrounding and restraining him. They pushed Marah away.  
  
"Let him go!" she wailed, clutching onto Hunter's hand desperately. Their fingers laced together. Their panicked gazes locked. "FIGHT THEM! PLEASE!" she howled to him, tightening her grip on his hand as the distance between them grew. Kapri was there in a flash, jerking Marah away from him. "NO! HUNTER!" Her hand slipped out of his.  
  
Hunter's heart skipped a beat. Marah had used his familiar name. She had held his hand. She had fought to stay by his side. "LET HER GO KAPRI! SHE'S YOUR SISTER FOR GOD'S SAKE! MARAH!"  
  
"FIGHT THEM, HUNTER!"  
  
"Give it up, dear sister," Kapri snarled, clasping her hand over Marah's mouth.   
  
Marah felt everything shift into slow motion, as it had before when Zurgane had died. Marah thrashed her arms around, screaming under Kapri's long-nailed hand. She watched as the kelzacks began to drag Hunter down the hall. As he was pulled past her, their eyes locked. Hunter stared helplessly at her. "It's okay," he mouthed silently amid the chaotic victory cries of the kelzacks. Marah''s heart shattered into a million pieces, seeing Hunter barely two feet from her, but yet impossible to reach.  
  
"If you act up one more time," Kapri sneered in Marah's ear, "I'll mind warp you again." Marah gasped, struggling. She saw Hunter's face fall. He had heard Kapri's threat. As Hunter disappeared down the hallway, Marah felt something jab into her arm. Her eyes widened. Kapri pulled the empty syringe from her arm. 


	10. Recall

Smiling, Marah looked up at the stars, bright and beautiful. She reached slowly up towards the tantalizing specks, feeling a laugh bubble up in her chest. She loved this; this happiness and bliss. It was pure, untainted by anything. Her fingers shrank before her eyes as they ascended towards those stars she hungered to touch. What she would give to share their light. Up and up her fingers rose for the heavens, but her singular and sole desire in the world was brought to a halt as her fingers hit glass, shockingly cold and deceptively smooth in texture. The world began to spin and, as if she had become entangled in the misty waves of dreams, she was sucked into a downwards spiral. The stars became streaks, which gave rise into blinding circles of spinning light that swirled away from her. Her smile faded.   
  
Hitting a surface hard as stone, Marah was jolted into reality, only to find that she had not moved at all and in fact lay in a tangle of sheets on her bed. The room was dim, glowing with a faint crimson blush. Blinking, she attempted to prop herself up on her elbows, but fell back, grabbing groggily at her forehead. It hurt to move. Her mind was racing, and she pressed her palms against her eyelids, trying to make sense of things. Suddenly a small, wheezing gasp escaped her lips. Removing her hands from her eyes, Marah forced herself up, though it was painful. Looking down horrified, her rigid, shaking fingers traced the outline of a bruise on her arm where... Where what? Wracking her brain for an answer did not bring her any closer to a conclusion, and she stared hopelessly across the dim expanse of her room to the door.   
  
Realization slammed against her violently, and she nearly fell backwards onto the mess of blankets beneath her. "Kapri... that shot... the teleports... the zelzacks- Hunter." A hand moved instinctively to her lips. The vivid image of Hunter being dragged off, beaten terribly and wide eyes fixed on her own, flashed through her head. He told her not to worry. She felt her heart shatter once more. "Oh my God..." What was she to do? Undoubtedly her bedroom door had been locked, and she could almost distinguish the shadow of a kelzack pacing absent mindedly on the other side. "I'll find a way," she murmured to herself, balling her frail hands into fists. "He's got to be on this ship somewhere."  
  
"Argh!" Hunter winced, poking rather crudely at a long gash along the side of his ribs. His crimson uniform had been torn by blunt weapons and blackened by laser beams to the extent that it hardly resembled anything- let alone the garb of a Ranger. His helmet was gone, but that was the last of his worries now. He studied the intricate bars of the cell trapping him. It was almost like a spider's web, save for the electrical shock it gave off upon touch; he should know- he'd already felt its sting once. Hunter assumed he was in the bowels of the ship, for he was near certain it had been a full twenty-four hours and through it all the area remained dark. Leaning his head back against the wall, he closed his eyes vainly. He knew he would not fall asleep; he'd been trying for hours but to no avail. His mind was too busy racing with fragmented images, memories of sounds, and thoughts of utter confusion. Slowly, he brought his hands up to his bruised and bloodied face, and dragged his fingers down, distorting his features. Those blasted kelzacks had beaten him all the way to the cell. It had been a total nightmare; there was no other word to describe it. 'We were so close,' he thought despondently. 'We were so close to freedom from this Hell.' Angrily, Hunter swung his arm out, hitting the wall violently. He cried out, furious, confused, wounded, and feeling lost. "This is your all-time low, Hunt," he told himself. "How will you get out of this one."  
  
AN: Ah! I am SO SORRY (times a bazillion!). What's it been, a YEAR since my last chapter? I must have killed this story by now, having let it sit idle for so long. My life has been incredibly merciless when it comes to finding the time to update, and for a period of time, my inspiration was gone. I hope I can revive this story and bring it back from the grave. My sincerest apologies to every loyal reader who yelled at his or her computer screen in frustration for my lack of commitment. I would write more now, but I need some sleep. I'll see this baby through! Hope you all can see past the inconvenience and enjoy my brief, but long over-due chapter. 


	11. Plans Rising

He straightened his jacket, keeping his face carefully down-turned as he reached for the handle. It had been a day of complete terror, a terror that sneered in his face, reminding him of his inferiority as he desperately tried to beam himself back up to the ship. He must have been crouched there for hours, screaming with futile rage. And in that blind pump and rush of blood, he must not have noticed her leaving, stumbling to her feet, grabbing at trees to drag herself shamefully away from his presence. 

But there was no other option now. Blake's eyes squinted into a tense grimace as the bell on the door jingled overhead, somehow ringing out above the music blared through speakers. The store seemed busy enough, considering how late it was, with several customers completing a purchase at the counter, another passing Blake to exit. 

"Hey! Dude, you're from that last big race, right? You and your brother kicked ass!" the customer stopped and was speaking with terrible volume. Blake cringed and, for a moment, considered the possibility of shoving him the tauntingly brief distance to the door; the last thing he wanted was some half-cracked fame and glory, while his brother's life was hanging in the balance. Patience was not on his current list of priorities. So, with furrowed brow and stiff movements, Blake shouldered past the man, head still bowed. 

"Sorry, you must be mistaken," he muttered hurriedly. Ignoring the response, he weaved through the racks of merchandise to the back counter where he heard the stupid rolling voices of Dustin and Shane. He felt an unexpected pit of disappointment, realizing that Tori would not be here too. A muscle in his jaw twitched, and he stepped up to the counter's half-door. 

"... Blake?" Two sets of widened eyes stared with grating confusion. Shane jumped to his feet, beating Dustin to the door's latch. With one clean motion he let Blake into the small space. Blake realized, from their reactions, that he probably looked like hell. What other reason could there be for such concern. 

"What are you- I mean, how have things... been?" Shane offered. 

Oh, Blake thought, how little he knows. He pulled himself to his full height, and with all the dignity he could bear to feign, he finally spoke. "I need your help." 

\\\ 

The ship trembled despite itself, humming its anxieties in subsonic pulses that shook Marah where she lay, splayed across her bed, her booted feet hanging limp over the edge. Her heart had beat itself into such a frenzy before plateauing in some unpleasantly idle form. She had decided to sleep in her clothes, all necessities hidden about her slight frame, all concealed with a vain hope. She had to be ready at a moment's notice. The time could present itself when she least anticipated, and being caught unprepared could prove fatal... for her and for Hunter. 

Her eyes flicked side-long to the door as a shadow passed irregularly. A kelzack was fumbling with the keypad to open the door. Must be mealtime, Marah noted vaguely, not knowing which meal this would be. Time of day was a thing of the past. But as the door finally slid open, she had an idea, and she rushed to meet the crony at the entrance. 

"I want to speak to him," she barked. "Now." The kelzack stared with its unintelligent blank face, the tray of food suspended in air with a single hand, the other blocking the doorway. "I am Lothor's NIECE! And I demand to see the Crimson Ranger immediately. That's an order!" She jerked the tray from its grip, sending utensils clattering to the floor. Her eyes flashed, triggering some primitive nerve in the kelzack, sending it loping off down the hall after first slamming the door quite close to Marah's nose. 

She let out a controlled gasp, blinking against Hunter's bloodied, selfless face-- an image which had been relentlessly haunting her, flooding her conscience and spilling her over. Leaving the scattered metal bits on the floor, she roughly landed the tray on her vanity, her mind racing, countless plans playing out in her mind's eye, each one systematically failing, one after the other. 

"Damnit!" she thrashed out, throwing a standing lamp off balance. She had to see him. She had to free him from this nightmare-- one he was never meant to endure. This was her own private punishment, her own malicious family failure. Not Hunter's. 

\\\ 

"It's impossible!" Cam laughed. "You're asking me to hack into a BROKEN system. You might as well be asking me to hack into a coconut! A surf board! If there isn't a running operating system, I can't do a thing. I can't hack into something that doesn't currently exist." 

"Come on, dude! There has to be a way! If anyone can figure it out, it's you." Dustin and Kelly stood draped over each other, with Shane and Blake on Cam's other side. There was an anxious silence in the dim of the dojo. 

"I just don't see how-" 

"Quit the crap, Cam. If it were one of US up there, you wouldn't let a second go to waste." Tori had appeared at the entrance to the room, standing cautiously on the bottom step. She glanced in Blake's direction with a pained expression, then shifted her gaze to Cam, hardening it with threatening influence. Everyone turned to look at her in surprise, before Dustin seized the opportunity to pitch in again. 

"He's just as much a Ranger as any of us." 

Blake shifted as if standing in a bed of hot coals, panic having drained the color from his face, sapping the energy from his body. All he could do was submit himself to the aid of this bumbling, strangely unified group. Did this make him one of them, by asking for their help? Was he dishonoring his parents, his brother, himself? Would this be seen as defeat in Hunter's eyes? Well, Blake thought solemnly, as long as he's alive to hate me. 

Cam looked to the Navy Ranger, his slackened posture, the distance in his gaze. His only family was in serious danger, helpless in the clutches of those who had betrayed and used them both. Surely they were worth more than that. Cam had always been taught forgiveness, even for those who had held him captive in his own domain not long ago. He looked back to Tori then, with her crumbling resolve and tentative blue gaze fixed to the back of Blake's head. Shane, Dustin and Kelly were all watching the Navy Ranger too. 

As if to save Blake from having to speak, Cam found his voice at last, "I'll do the best I can." And with that he turned his back to the crowd of them, focusing on his computer screen. The Morse code of clicking keys filled the otherwise silent room. 

\\\ 

**AN:** Sorry this is so short an update, but I'm still getting back into the old groove, and I don't want to rush anything and ruin the story. There may be a few nit-picking inconsistencies, because I haven't gone back to reread the last few chapters, but bear with me? Thank you so much for the support and encouraging words. 


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